Paradox

"...who must Like th' other foot, obliquely run;" -"A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning" by John Donne

     When I first read this statement it appeared illogical and contradictory, like a paradox should. Usually when one run the feet will be in paralll paths or else the individual will be wasting energy. Even to turn slightly requires more energy than to run in straight line. Although the statement suggests the follower is running in circles, the rest of the stanza clears up the contradiction. The speaker says that his/her firmness makes his "circle just." The follower is being guided along a circular path leading back to the start. The author tries to explain the difficulty in love in this stanza. He suggests that love is not easy- it requires effort, hence the circular path- but it can lead back to something great which the two once shared. Another contradiction I found which was slightly more easy to comprehend. In "Toads" Larkin uses an entire stanza of contradictions to illustrate a point. He mentions those who "live on their wits" such as "Losels, loblolly-men, louts" who somehow "don't end as paupers." When I think of of thieves and bums, I usually think of poverty or paupers and not someone who lives on their wits. He uses the contradiction to explain a point which he makes throughout the poem. He says that despite their immoral means of livelihood, they ultimately end up more fulfilled in life than someone who chases wealth.