The Studhorse Man

The Studhorse Man is a novel by Robert Kroetsch (Toronto, London and New York, 1969). The story of Hazard Lepage, Kroetsch's studhorse man, is told by Demeter Proudfoot, a madman in a bathtub. Lepage undertakes an Albertan odyssey in quest of a mare for his virgin stallion, the noble Poseidon; the stallion and Lepage's adventures acquire mythological dimensions in a text that comments on the nature of sexuality, history, time and the western Canadian character. The Studhorse Man exemplifies Kroetsch's powers as an explorer of western Canadian mythology and demonstrates his exuberant use of language.