a hero one year ago The streets were full of roses and myrtle flowers It was roses roses all the way Crowds stood on rooftops to see him The whole city celebrated him with bells and colorful flags But now everything has changed Now after only a year the same people hate him They think he has done wrong so they want to punish him The patriot says Alack it was I who leaped at the sun It means he tried his best to do great things for the people But people have forgotten his sacrifice He is being taken for execution It is raining as he walks to his death People throw stones at him He feels blood on his forehead He says They fling Stones at me for my year's misdeeds This dramatic change shows how quickly public opinion can change But Browning does not end the poem with sadness Instead he brings a very strong feeling of hope Browning s Optimism in the Last Stanza The most important part of the poem is the last stanza Here we see Browning s true optimism The patriot does not curse the crowd He does not complain about people s betrayal He only looks toward God with trust He says Tis God shall repay I am safer so This line shows that the patriot believes God will judge him fairly even if people do not This is the center of Browning s optimistic philosophy Browning believes that life may look unfair and people may betray Success may turn into failure but God s justice is final and perfect So even in the moment of death the patriot feels safe He believes that God will reward him for his honesty and sacrifice This positive faith is the main reason why Browning is called an optimistic poet Pain and Hope Together Another important quality of Browning s optimism is that he does not ignore pain He fully shows suffering loneliness and heartbreak In The Patriot we see the silent rooftops the tied hands the bleeding forehead and the stones thrown by the people The patriot walks toward death in the rain But Browning always adds a light after the darkness He wants to teach that pain is not the end There is always hope beyond suffering The patriot s physical suffering becomes smaller when he thinks of God s reward This mixing of pain and hope is a clear sign of Browning s optimistic message Optimism Through Faith in God Browning s optimism does not come from the world It comes from faith He believes that human beings make mistakes but God never makes mistakes So when the patriot loses everything he still believes he will receive justice from God In conclusion Robert Browning is truly an optimistic poet The Patriot clearly proves this Even though the poem shows cruelty change and betrayal Browning ends it with a powerful message of trust and hope