The Outsider, the central hero of the drama, returns to his homeland after thirty years of absence and finds his ancestral home destroyed by a fire that broke out during the night. Was it an accident or arson? The question remains to be answered. In the closed society of the "Swamp," as the neighborhood where the characters of the play live is called, unfolds from the ashes a "woven tapestry of lies, mistakes, and misunderstandings." "When everything burns, you read in the ashes," the Outsider will say characteristically, gazing at the remnants of the ancestral home.

The Burned House, written in 1907, belongs to the "chamber works" section that the playwright composed specifically for his personal theater, Intima Teatern, in Stockholm. However, even more, it belongs to the groundbreaking works of world theater. The "chamber works" owe their inspiration to the small Berlin Kammerspiele of Max Reinhardt, which was inaugurated in 1905. Three years later, Strindberg, presenting the idea and goals to the members of Intima Teatern, states: "In drama, we seek the pinnacle, a significant pattern but with limitations because the pattern itself determines the form."

The Burned House revolves around the space of a house and is inspired by the creator's childhood home. Through dramatic monologues, the playwright reminds us that there is light, but only with the assistance of higher powers will man awaken and embark on a path of self-knowledge. The first world premiere took place on December 5, 1907. The historic performance in 1970 at the Royal Theatre of Sweden was a great success, where the role of the Outsider was taken on by the internationally renowned actor Max von Sydow.

The play is presented for the first time in the Greek language by Kappa Publishing, translated by Margarita Melberg from Swedish. The volume is enriched by an extensive epilogue specifically for this edition by Dr. Maria Sehopoulos, a theater scholar, and by a detailed timeline of the life and work of the leading Swedish playwright.