1B - How far do you agree that the Patriot and the Pied Piper are Heroes?

Both The Patriot and The Pied Piper contain characters that do not represent the conventional literary values of a “hero.” Despite their unconventional portrayal a close reading of the two dramatic monologues can reveal heroic actions in the face of corruption and betrayal.

The Pied Piper can be considered a hero because after ridding the town Hamelin of its “vermin” he his humiliated and betrayed by the corrupted corporation. A more political reading of the poem can allow the piper to be seen as the common man betrayed and abused by a corrupt authority, this can make his questionable actions seem less villainous and more as a justified course of revenge. The dramatic monologue can also be seen as an allegory of institutionalised racism, the corporation refuse to pay a man that wears “a gipsy coat of red and yellow” This could bring a further didactic purpose to the dramatic monologue, Browning could be warning that this level of discrimination could lead to revenge like the piper’s. Therefore the Piper is a hero in the sense that he stands in the face of adversity. 

Another heroic aspect to the Pied Piper is that he originally used his gift with good intent. He used his “secret charm” to remove the “vermin” from the people of Hamelin, his actions ended the villagers suffering and this demonstrates the Piper has some aspects of morals traditionally associated with heroism.

The Patriot is betrayed in a similar way to the Pied Piper, his “misdeeds” are hidden from the reader but he is implied to be a war criminal. The Patriot is however firm in his belief that whatever he did was done in the best interests of his country, hence the title “The Patriot”. The Patriot “leaped at the sun” for his country, this allusion to the story of Icarus is not a story of hubris, Browning uses this allusion to suggest that the patriot burnt his wings and fell not for his own pride but for his country. The Patriot is used by Browning to warn of the potential dangers of patriotism in the sense that it can lead people to commit atrocities, but the fact the Patriot committed his “misdeeds” in a selfless way does invoke pity and sympathy from the reader and selflessness can be considered an important aspect of heroism.

It is important to consider the subtitle in The Patriot, “AN OLD STORY” Browning suggests that characters like the Patriot always will be and always have been. This type of antihero is often misrepresented in literature and Browning seeks to present both the Patriot and the Pied Piper in a light that criticises but also respects that heroes do not need to conform to literary stereotypes, the Pied Piper and the Patriot are heroes in their own rights even if their heroism cannot be observed on a surface level.