In the story of "Gimpel the Fool" by Issac Bashevis Singer, Gimpel tells the story of his sometimes crazy life. Although he is constantly called a fool and dope, he does not see himself as one. His vision of life and the way that people treat other people is seriously warped by events that have happened over the course of his life. He is a lonely man, looking for attention anyway that he can get it. Being an orphan, he is in constant search of acceptance from all who are around him. Gimpel knows how the rest of the world views him and his reactions to situations. He pretty much gives the people what they want, in turn for their attention. Gimpel is not a fool at all. He is intelligent enough to see what is going on and tries to make everyone happy.
             The first example of Gimpels' willingness to be accepted comes at the beginning of the story. Knowing that he is constantly being watched and his reactions rated, he lets the others around his town tell him what is fact or fiction. When told that the rabbi's wife was pregnant, he took the day off from school. After he realizes that he is being laughed at he states, "I think to myself: Let it pass. So they take advantage of me" (Singer). Although is does bother him to be treated this way, in his mind he finds a way to make sense of it all. He shows that without their jokes, they may not pay attention to him at all. This would be even more devastating than just being the butt of their jokes because then he would again be alone.
             Gimpel also has the ability to know when he is being tricked or not, something a fool would simply not be able to see. When the towns' people tell him that his parents are
             indeed alive and that they are calling for him, he goes to find them. He attempts to keep positive thoughts in his head, as this keeps his life going. He says, "To tell the truth, I knew very well that nothing of the
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