Gimpel the Fool Analysis Essay

In the short story titled, “Gimpel the Fool,” by Isaac Singer, Gimpel is not foolish, simply a fool. When you are foolish you know what you are doing, and are aware of the way you act. However, when you are a fool, you are “innocent” in a sense, and almost like a newborn baby who does not know anything. Speaking of common sense, you do not realize the difference between what is right and wrong, people can easily take advantage of you, and you are gullible and believe everything one says. One can tell you the sky is purple, you will agree it is indeed. As there is a difference between being foolish and a fool, Gimpel portrays himself as a fool through his innocence, optimism, and gullibility.

Gimpel’s innocence leads many people to abuse him. As Gimpel states, “I was an orphan” (Singer 994). This is truly significant because being an orphan is a traumatizing experience. In Gimpel’s situation, just as he did not have parents, there was no one beside him to prepare him for the teasing he would encounter amongst his village. As Gimpel states, “When the pranksters and leg-pullers found I was easy to fool, every one of them tried his luck with me” (Singer 994). This is noteworthy because he did not have much knowledge of the world and his village took that into account, so if one were to tell him “your father and mother have stood up from the grave” (Singer 995), he would go and check as he would believe it did not hurt to check. Yet, he claims to know the truth after each lie he is being told. However, Gimpel gives into the matter. As a result, people take into account his innocence, use it to mock him and to their advantage; Gimpel fails to realize, and gives him the label of a fool.

Gimpel’s optimism leads him to encounter countless events with a positive outlook, such as when the matchmakers matched him up with Elka, a so-called “virgin.” Gimpel states, “I wanted to go off to another town, but then everyone got busy matchmaking” (Singer 995). This is significant because Gimpel got matched up with a woman who everyone said is a virgin, and when he questioned her, Elka said, she was an orphan as well. Gimpel discovers her as someone who is broken and comes from a similar background, hence why he perceives her to be a possibility. Gimpel’s weakness is he is a fool, Elka’s weakness is she has a big mouth, together they are a perfect pair as he needs a strong woman to stand up for him, he states“what did I stand to lose? I reflected: I’ll see what comes of it” (Singer 996). When the Rabbi asks if Elka is a widow or divorced at the wedding ceremony, the Saxton’s wife states, “Both a widow and divorced” (Singer 996). This is eloquent because Gimpel was told by Elka herself that she was a virgin, was told by the people of Frampol she was a virgin, and therefore believed her to be a virgin. However, Gimpel handled the situation unexpectedly by swallowing what he heard and proceeding to marry her, as he had nothing to lose. He did not know what he was getting himself into and did not realize Elka’s true colors, he states, “How can he be mine?” (Singer 997). This is noteworthy because Gimpel is referring to the child Elka gave birth to, seventeen weeks after the wedding, causing her to deceive Gimpel once again. The way Gimpel handles the situation is odd because he forgets what Elka has done as he falls in love with the child. One night after his bakery almost caught fire, Gimpel went home to take a well night’s rest, only to find a man next to his wife Elka, he tiptoed back out to not wake up the baby, and instead went back to the bakery to sleep on the floor on top of a sack of flour. Gimpel went to the rabbi the next day to speak of Elka’s actions, he states, “She denied it, denied everything, bone and stone!” (Singer 998). This is important because soon after the rabbi got involved Gimpel thought of the situation overnight and concluded he was in the wrong and his wife was right, causing the rabbi to reconsider the case. Moreover, he spent twenty years with his wife, and not one of the children she bore was his. Gimpel could have put a stop to the matter from the start of his relationship, however, his optimistic perspective on all the situations he underwent made him undergo the suffering of realizing through his wife on her deathbed, that he was being deceived and in fact, was not in the wrong. 

Gimpel’s gullibility causes him to believe and fall for everything his wife, along with the people of Frampol say. Gimpel states, “Then I came nearer to the bed. And what did I see but the apprentice lying there beside Elka” (Singer 1000). This is truly significant because he saw with his eyes the apprentice lying down next to his wife, however, Elka is quick to tell him to check up on the goat, as “it seems she’s been sick” (Singer 1000). Despite the situation Gimpel has encountered, he goes to check up on the goat to find she is fine, not realizing his wife only brought up the goat to distract him from the mistake she is in. After Elka’s first child was born, and Gimpel questioned her and how the child could not be his, Elka convinced him the child was truly his, but to confirm Gimpel went to the schoolmaster. The schoolmaster states, “There isn’t a woman in this world who is not the granddaughter of Eve” (Singer 997). This is important because he was convinced the child was his after the schoolmaster said so, and did not bother being stuck on his belief; leading him to forget his troubles once again. Gimpel states, “I think to myself: Let it pass. So they take advantage of me” (Singer 994). This is noteworthy because, throughout the story, Gimpel does not allow a situation to pass because he thinks the people are taking advantage of him, he allows it to pass as the rabbi, his wife, Maimonides, the people of Frampol, convince him he is wrong. As a result, Gimpel claims he knows the people are fooling him, yet gives in to the situations. In the end, he realizes he is deceived by everyone and leaves everything to God.

In conclusion, Gimpel is a fool and has come across numerous hints to prove otherwise. The way the people of Frampol, along with his wife, took advantage of his innocence, to him looking at the optimistic side of each situation he undergoes, and to Gimpel’s gullibility of believing even the silliest; Gimpel is not foolish, merely a fool.