This work aims to formulate a theory on the role the madman - straggler of the streets - plays in popular imagery and the place he holds in his community. Madness, as here depicted, follows Foucault’s interpretation: a historically determined phenomena, divided, in the course of history, into two modalities - one tragic, the other critical - the first, an interpretation prior to the advent of psychiatry. The material was collected in the literary narratives - poetry and prose - taken from the works of Brazilian authors and through the analysis of these narratives we sought to apprehend characteristics inherent in the relationships existing between the street-wandering madman and the community in which he roams - players upon a world stage - and thus to evaluate the connection between madman and town.
Straggler of the streets; Literature; Popular imageny; Facault, Michel