The Madman: His Parables and Poems was published by Alfred A. Knopf in 1918, Gibran’s first book written in English (his earlier works were in Arabic). It established the parable form that would reach its fullest expression in The Prophet five years later, but its tone is darker, more sardonic, and more explicitly critical of social convention.
The framing is provided by the title figure: a man who one day discovered that all his faces — his happy face, his sad face, his social face — had been stolen. “And because I was no longer able to find a face to meet people with, I ran away from men and became a madman.” This equation of authenticity with madness — the perception that only the insane dare to be themselves — gives the collection its philosophical spine.
The parables are short (most fit on a single page), pointed, and often savage. They address hypocrisy, self-deception, the absurdity of conventional morality, and the violence that society inflicts on those who refuse its masks. The influence of Nietzsche (whom Gibran had been reading) is evident in the celebration of the individual against the herd, and in the identification of conventional goodness with cowardice.
The book sold modestly at first but established Gibran’s relationship with Knopf and demonstrated that there was an audience for philosophical prose poetry in English — paving the way for The Prophet’s success.
Collecting The Madman
First edition (Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 1918): Cloth binding.
Market values:
- First edition: $200–$800
- Signed by Gibran: $1,500–$5,000
- Good condition: $100–$300
- Without jacket (if issued with one): $80–$200