 The revolt formed the basis for the late 16th @-@ century play , The Life and Death of Jack Straw , possibly written by George Peele and probably originally designed for production in the city 's guild pageants . It portrays Jack Straw as a tragic figure , being led into wrongful rebellion by John Ball , making clear political links between the instability of late @-@ Elizabethan England and the 14th century . The story of the revolt was used in pamphlets during the English Civil War of the 17th century , and formed part of John Cleveland 's early history of the war . It was deployed as a cautionary account in political speeches during the 18th century , and a chapbook entitled The History of Wat Tyler and Jack Strawe proved popular during the Jacobite risings and American War of Independence . Thomas Paine and Edmund Burke argued over the lessons to be drawn from the revolt , Paine expressing sympathy for the rebels and Burke condemning the violence . The Romantic poet Robert Southey based his 1794 play Wat Tyler on the events , taking a radical and pro @-@ rebel perspective . 
