The partition function of a family of four dimensional N=2 gauge theories has
been recently related to correlation functions of two dimensional conformal
Toda field theories. For SU(2) gauge theories, the associated two dimensional
theory is A_1 conformal Toda field theory, i.e. Liouville theory. For this case
the relation has been extended showing that the expectation value of gauge
theory loop operators can be reproduced in Liouville theory inserting in the
correlators the monodromy of chiral degenerate fields. In this paper we study
Wilson loops in SU(N) gauge theories in the fundamental and anti-fundamental
representation of the gauge group and show that they are associated to
monodromies of a certain chiral degenerate operator of A_{N-1} Toda field
theory. The orientation of the curve along which the monodromy is evaluated
selects between fundamental and anti-fundamental representation. The analysis
is performed using properties of the monodromy group of the generalized
hypergeometric equation, the differential equation satisfied by a class of four
point functions relevant for our computation.Comment: 17 pages, 3 figures; references added