Who Is Gimpel A Fool

Is it better to be ‘a fool’ and not aware of the world’s problems, or see all the world’s problems? The rabbi in the story, “Gimpel the Fool,” expresses his opinions on the world, much like Isaac Bashevis Singer did. There are several commonalities between, and inspirations from the author’s personal life that could explain what led him to write his short story “Gimpel the Fool.” Isaac Bashevis Singer, a Jewish storyteller, likes to reflect his experiences on those from his stories. During the time of Singer’s works, World War II played a major role in Germany, because the Jews were being mistreated and killed. Singer was a storyteller, just like Gimpel, who expressed their thoughts on the world’s problems. The idea of revenge played a major

When on her deathbed, Gimpel’s wife of twenty years confesses that none of her six children are his. Because of this, Gimpel is tempted to disbelieve all that he has been told and to enact revenge against those who have took part in his humiliation. The rabbi tells him to urinate in the dough so the people who called him ‘a fool’ could eat filth. However, his temptation is a central crisis of faith. His faith in others, who have betrayed him, is defied, as is his faith in himself and God, because among the stories he has believed are those referring to the existence of God (Shenker 11). Singer also was known as “the man who talked back to God,” for his dedication to religion and beliefs towards his faith. He used his faith to help develop stories, and used faith to greatly influence Gimpel. On the other hand, revenge played a similar, but greatly different role in Singer’s life. The Holocaust, which killed many Jews, did nothing but anger him. This shows how he implemented revenge into his stories. A Love Story is a major example of how he used his experiences to reflect his personal beliefs. Not only did the Holocaust have a major effect on him, but all of the Jewish people living in the threatened areas throughout the countries being invaded. Gimpel fought the idea of revenge, and left hoping and waiting for the new world ahead of him in the future. His stories show the eventual breakup of large Jewish families during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century’s, as their members are differently affected by religious and cultural opportunities of the modern era. Revenge plays a key part in making his characters seek