Tightrope walking inexperienced funambulists will often walk barefoot so that the wire can be grasped between the big and second toe. This is more often done when using a rope, as the softer and silkier fibres are less taxing on the bare foot than the harder and more abrasive braided wire. The word "funambulism" or the phrase ""walking a tightrope"" is also used in a metaphorical setting not referring to any actual acrobatic acts. For instance, politicians are said to "walk a tightrope" when trying to balance two opposing views with little room for compromise. The term can also be used in
Letter to a Priest which have dwelt in me for years (some of them at least) and which form a barrier between me and the Church."" Weil scholar George Panichas writes that the letter reflects Weil's profound disagreement with official Catholic dogma, but also shows that her heart belongs to the Church. The letter was addressed to a French priest living in New York, the Dominican Fr. Édouard Couturier, when Simone Weil herself was staying there in the autumn of 1942. She was anxious at this time to return to Europe to join the Free French Movement of Charles de Gaulle in London, even