Madman

Widely known in America as author of The Prophet, which sold more copies in the 20th century than any other book but the Bible, the great Lebanese-American poet and artist Kahlil Gibran (1883–1931) first became known to Americans in 1918 with the publication of The Madman.Thought-provoking and inspiring, the book is a collection of memorable, life-affirming parables and poems, many of them casting an ironic light on the beliefs, aspirations, and vanities of humankind — and many reminiscent of the work of Tagore and Nietzsche, both of whom were strong influences on Gibran.Among the 35 poems and parables in this volume are &quote;How I Became a Madman,&quote; &quote;The Two Hermits,&quote; &quote;The Wise Dog,&quote; &quote;The Good God and the Evil God,&quote; &quote;Night and the Madman,&quote; &quote;The Three Ants,&quote; &quote;When My Sorrow Was Born,&quote; &quote;And When My Joy Was Born,&quote; and many more.The book includes several illustrations by the author, whose exquisite drawings are reminiscent of Rodin and the best of Blake. &quote;. . . the greatest of Arab Romantics and father of a 20th-century Romantic tradition whose impact on Arab writers has been at least as strong as that of 19th-century figures such as Wordsworth and Keats on their English-speaking counterparts.&quote; — Dr. Suheil Bushrui, Director of the Kahlil Gibran Chair on Values and Peace, University of Maryland