Madman or Saint

The work Madman or Saint (O locura o santidad) is a play by José Echegaray y Eizaguirre, a prominent Spanish dramatist who also received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1904. Echegaray, who was also a mathematician and statesman, often explored societal themes in his plays.1

In Madman or Saint, Echegaray uses a thesis drama approach, influenced by playwrights like Henrik Ibsen, to critique societal norms. The play illustrates how honesty can be condemned as madness by society, highlighting a satirical reversal of conventional values. While Echegaray's plays were melodramatic and sometimes lacked dramatic force, they were very popular in his time due to his imaginative plots and innovative stage effects that helped modernize Spanish theatre.1