Just as "easy-going" is Gimpel's defining characteristic, his marriage to Elka is his defining relationship. Throughout their twenty years together, Elka cheats on Gimpel numerous times, with many different men -- including his own trusted apprentice. Gimpel allows himself to be convinced that this is not really occurring, however, just as he allows himself to believe that the young son she had prior to their marriage was actually her brother (he eventually refers to the character simply as "her brother"). Through it all, however, Gimpel manages to have a family of children that he loves completely and in unadulterated totality, even after Elka tells him that they are not his (one of the few instances in the tale in which Gimpel acts with disbelief). While most men in his situation would have become bitter, left their families, and grown both angry and jaded -- and with good reason -- Gimpel's decision to check reason at the door in favor of belief and https://www.paperdue.com/essay/gimpel-truly-the-fool-isaac-14851