In Isaac Bashevis Singer's "Gimpel the Fool", Gimpel is treated with no respect from his peers or the society of Frampol where he lives. Gimpel's life has been riddled with tricks and lies from the townspeople for as long as he can remember. No one respects Gimpel or has any sympathy for him and his misfortunes. Gimpel allows himself to be the schlemiel of the town because of his unwillingness to stand up for himself and the truth (Sobeloff 1). Gimpel eventually causes himself so much misery by allowing himself to be the butt of all of the jokes in Frampol that he can no longer stand his own life.
             Gimpel believes whatever he hears, and that causes people to continue to belittle him. His friends and peers have deceived Gimpel since he was a boy in school (Singer 131). Gimpel's peers would tell him things such as the Rabbi's wife was pregnant or that his mother and father had risen from the grave and were looking for him (Singer 131-132). Gimpel believed all of the lies because he did not know what else to do (Singer 131). Elka also told her share of lies to Gimpel, which he also reluctantly believed. Elka convinced him that the child that she had only four months after there wedding was his son. She also told Gimpel that she was faithful to him when she really was not. Gimpel may have believed all of the lies and deceptions because he thought it would be easier to go along with them than to try to stand up against the whole town and all of their cunningness (Sobeloff 2). Gimpel even says that if he ever would say, "Ah, you're kidding!" that it caused trouble and that people got angry (Singer 131).
             Because of his gullibility and cowardly behavior, Gimpel became the joke of the town of Frampol. Whenever there is a joke to be made it is always aimed towards Gimpel. Gimpel's friends picked on him in school and continue by convincing him to marry Elka. Gimpel did not want ...