Jared Marcel Pollen is a writer living in Prague. He is author of Venus&Document.
After the 1819 Peterloo Massacre, the young radical poet Percy Bysshe Shelley proclaimed he was deserting “the odorous gardens of literature” for “the great sandy desert of politics.” Instead, he infused literature with revolutionary political ideas.
In 1905, revolt across the Russian Empire threatened to topple the tsar — but also prompted a formidable reactionary backlash. For Rosa Luxemburg, it showed the need for working-class leadership in the fight to democratize society.