John Reed - a Character from a Georgian Poem

Abstract

Every new era brings its own views and values, both in politics and in culture. The beginning of the 20th century in Georgia also started with very complex events. The poem Galaktion Tabidze would write in 1924 is titled: ,,John Reed.”  Who was he, and why did this person interest the Georgian poet so much that he brought his name and surname into the title of the poem? An American journalist and writer. In March 1919, his famous book  ,,10 Days That Shook the World” was published in New-York in English. It is precisely these words that the Georgian poet quotes in the poem.  His text describes the October Revolution in Russia in 1917. As mentioned, John Reed himself was in the country at that time, as a direct witness to the events. These images are seen and experienced simultaneously by both the Georgian and the American poet-at least, this is how Galaktioni perceives it. Galaktion Tabudze’s  poem ,,John Reed" - artistic-documentary frames brought onto the big screen.