Literary Fragments from an Involution Alphabet: poems, prose, textual fragments (2026) published by Haeresis Dae Press is Jae Rodger’s newest and unique book of hers yet. Following Invisible Generation: Rants, Polemics, and Critical Theory Against the Planetary Work Machine (2021) and War of Dreams: A Field Guide to DIY PsyOps (2024), both which could be simply, albeit poorly, expressed as works of “political theory,” Literary Fragments is a text of creative writing that seeks to make you uncomfortable. But let me be clear: you will learn much about post-left anarchy, voluntary servitude, primitivism, and other fringe theories here, and Jae’s two previous works are indeed creative, not even considering her amazing and provocative flyers!
Let me acknowledge HDP’s great cover design and layout. Their marked style of off-white and grey comes to peak here in this almost pocket-book sized creation. The front cover features a flyer from Jae and the typical font of HDP, which work well together. It is great to see HDP and Jae’s styles merge like this. (One note: I did notice the binding was weak and nearly coming apart from my travel across the country with this in my bag.) The back cover features an excerpt from the introduction, which will help the audience grasp the intent and purpose of the book:
The literary forms often allow or even encourage me to be unreasonable. Some of these pieces are maybe a bit sentimental. Others are a bit.. Harsh? Brutal? Hateful? Indeed, these contain some extremes of emotions. These would should not be sanitized or domesticated. Some pieces contain words I would never use in a conversation. I give no trigger warning, because in these pieces I am trigger happy. Words should have a harshness, maybe even a violence. I would like words to cut control lines, or at least help me decondition myself.
The work is divided into three sections: Poems, Prose, Old Poems. I will not speak to each individual section, but to the whole, as neither section has a particular focus separate from the others. In fact, in my notes, I could most easily find two themes: 1) Fight against banality 2) Acknowledgement of voluntary servitude.
The fight against banality can be best summarized in Jae’s own words where she writes, “I don’t want your simulated construction of freedom / wanna explode in infinity multiplicity / contradictory" (“Labor,” 129). This means finding forms of resistance not condoned by the System itself, or its controlled opposition lackeys of the Left. It means resisting easy identification and categorization, persistent topics throughout.
The acknowledgement of Voluntary Servitude is perhaps where Jae is harshest. And indeed, Jae is harsh, brutal, and hateful: it is towards the self-domesticated automatons of the world and their equally dron-ish leaders. I am reminded of the irony and anger found in the work of Arthur Desmond (better known as Ragnar Redbeard), such as Might is Right. That work, as Jae and others point out, is not a cheering of repression of the worker and the weak, but an attempt to shame them and remind them their own oppression is a product in part of their own complicity and non-resistance. I believe Jae is attempting a similar project here.
I would also compare the work to the likes of “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” by Phillip K. Dick. Dick’s work, among his others, focuses on issues of perception, reality, other forms of consciousness, humanity, and illusion. Jae likewise is interested in tearing apart authoritarian, outside constructions of reality: “Reality is a construction of trash scraps barely held together by a layer of duct tape and staples” (“Reality is a Cheap High School Play,” 64). However, unlike PKD, there are no human-like machines in Jae’s view, only machine-like humans. And what about the response to banality and our domestic condition? No blueprints or easy answers are on offer from Rodgers, but she does offer some tools for escape: insurrection, drugs, religious ecstasy, and embracing of so-called mental disorders. Where the irony begins and ends eludes me here, but maybe that is the point! Jae Rodger’s work continues to embody her philosophy of a rebellion against restrictions, easy identifications for easier control. Do not come to this book wanting “just” poems and short stories. Come to be uncomfortable, provoked, maybe angry. I recommend the book, just not for the faint of heart.
Book is $16
Jae Rodgers can be reached at:
PO Box 701
Cobleskill, NY 12043
HPD can be reached at:
PO Box 1450
Boulder, UT 84716
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