~ Wendy Cope, Lonely Hearts
The way I see it, this poem is paradoxical in two different ways.
1) The Conditions and the Situation: Each person who is writing in this "Personals" column has a different story, a different need, a different sexual orientation. However, all of these people want the same thing - love. Although these people come from diverse places and have different backgrounds, all of their hearts yearn for the same thing.
2) The Description and the Situation: The title "Lonely Hearts" suggests that each person writing in this column is alone, and not happy about it. All of these people may be alone in their life, but they are linked by what they seek. Everybody wants companionship; this brings about a tone of universality although the people are all considered lonely - there is someone out there who is like them (and hopefully someone who is for them).
The "Situation" aspect of both paradoxes is the same - love. This is made apparent through the uniformity of the last lines of each stanza - "Do you live in North London? Is it you?" or "Can someone make my simple wish come true?" Also, the last stanza, "Who knows where it may lead once we've begun? Can someone make my simple wish come true? Do you live in North London? Is it you?" is what links all of these people together and creates a common wish for which we all strive in the end.
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