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Oxymorons
Definition of Paradox
A paradox is a figure of speech that seems to contradict itself, but which, upon further examination, contains some kernel of truth or reason. Oscar Wilde's famous declaration that "Life is... read full definition
A paradox is a figure of speech that seems to contradict itself, but which, upon further examination, contains some kernel of truth or reason. Oscar... read full definition
A paradox is a figure of speech that seems to contradict itself, but which, upon further examination, contains some kernel... read full definition
Volume 5, Book 4: Javert Derailed
Explanation and Analysis—Error in the Dogma:
When Jean Valjean saves Javert at the barricades and subsequently lets him go free, Javert's entire ethical belief system crumbles before his eyes. With a paradox, the narrator illustrates Javert's bewilderment:
To be obliged to confess this to oneself: infallibility is not infallible, there may exist error in the dogma, all has not been said when a code speaks, society is not perfect, authority is complicated with vacillation, a crack is possible in the immutable, judges are but men, the law may err, tribunals may make a mistake! To behold a rift in the immense blue pane of the firmament!
Javert has been completely derailed by Jean Valjean and his deeds of kindness and justice. Javert is a man ruled by right and wrong; learning that right is not always wholly right and that wrong is not always wholly wrong is frightening—earth-shattering, even. To Javert, the world has now become an enormous paradox: "infallibility is not infallible." The black-and-white system of justice to which Javert adhered was unfailing, faultless, and foolproof. When he realizes that justice can fail, that the bureaucracy can have faults, that a convict can prove him a fool, his dogma, which he once thought infallible, is forever changed. Javert is unable to reconcile his belief system with his new discoveries.
The word "infallible" derives from the Latin "in-," meaning "not," and "fallare," meaning "to deceive." Javert has only fooled and deceived himself into thinking of Jean Valjean as a heartless convict. He simply cannot understand why Jean Valjean did not let him die in the hands of insurrectionists, when all evidence points to Jean Valjean being a wretched criminal.
Related Themes:
