What are the two systems of justice as shown in the poem “The Patriot” by Robert Browning?
The two systems of justice the poet indicates in the poem “The Patriot” are the judgment of humans in this earthly life and the judgment by the Almighty in heaven after death.
In the poem we see the narrator regret his sad end which is in sharp contrast to his success and glory one year before. Though a year ago people welcomed him as a hero and celebrated for him, now he is tried and convicted and being led away to be put to death. The narrator regrets that people have misunderstood him and thus he is being punished wrongly. This is the earthly judgment given by the public and he has to accept his fate.
But the narrator thinks himself to be a true patriot and believes that he will be rewarded for his good deeds by the God in Heaven. That will be real justice for him. As he has full faith in the God’s system of justice he feels relieved even after being convicted in the human system of justice —
‘Tis God shall repay: I am safer so.