Steppenwolf, novel by Hermann Hesse, published as Der Steppenwolf in 1927. The title refers to a style adopted by Harry Haller, Hesse’s protagonist. Haller is a writer, a loner and an outsider who thinks of himself as a wolf of the steppes. Distrusting Western values and despising middle-class society, he despairs of connecting with another human being. Eventually he learns that by conquering his sexual and emotional inhibitions, he can relate to others and still keep his ideals.