Editorial

This issue is, in essence, about style and substance. We look at two of the big names of the horse world; the showmen ( style over substance ), characterized by Monty Roberts, and the scientist ( substance over style ) characterized by Dr Hiltrud Strasser. In a deeper sense the two represent conflicting visions of reality.

Monty Roberts

Roberts offers a spectacle in which the focus is, naturally, biased toward appearances. In this vision the wow factor is of massive importance, a treadmill that the travelling showman is trapped on, where each tour has to have something novel to show. Not only should it be new, but also unique and distinct from what other such travellers offer.

Roberts himself is somewhat too old now to play the romantic horseman figure, but there are plenty of other younger models that represent the type very nicely.

Then there is Strasser; dismissive of style and self-admittedly bad at it. In this vision of reality, logic and scientific explanation dominate in place of wow factor. Personal appearances are not the point here; it is the message that is all important, not the messenger.

Reduced to its simplest this conflict is, on the one hand, about what a thing looks like and, on the other, about what it means. Superficial appearances will do fine if all we want is a show, or to nurture a romantic vision of our relationship with the horse.

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