明朝嘉靖大倭寇帶給中國巨大的傷害，但也造就了不少靖海英雄。在官方記載中，胡宗憲招撫汪直、徐海而殲，是正史中的英雄，然而民間卻更看重徐海愛妾：王翠翹，其以柔克剛的規勸。最後王翠翹既為國除害，又以死報答徐海知遇之恩，公私兩便，史乘中驚鴻一瞥的倩影，匯流成說部中的英雌，可說是「桃李不言，下自成蹊」。相較之下，胡宗憲趁醉調戲王翠翹的劣跡，雖不見於幕僚筆下，亦已在傳奇、擬話本、章回各體小說中不斷傳佈，欲掩彌彰，讓英雄沾污。「王翠翹故事」到了當代文壇，則在高陽手下形成長篇小說《草莽英雄》。高陽選擇用多元的英雄譜呈現這段歷史，既正視胡宗憲平倭之功勳、又目王翠翹為紅粉巾幗，還有羅龍文及阿狗等不同層次的英雄形象。更重要的是，小說替盜魁徐海翻案，將其塑造成「菩薩心腸，英雄氣概」的草莽英雄，可見作者另闢蹊徑的匠心。本文即以《草莽英雄》的這種經典轉化，窺探「英雄」的各種可能性。

During the Ming Dynasty, the Jiajing wokou raids brought serious harm, but it also made many heroes. According to the official record, Hu Zong-xian was regarded as a hero because he killed the pirate leaders named Wang Zhi and Xu Hai, who were lured to arrest. However, the people pay more attention to Xu Hai’s concubine, Wang Cui-qiao, who persuaded him to surrender. Wang Cui-qiao remained loyal to her own nation and committed suicide for Xu Hai. She was comprehensive in both public and private and also a silent heroine in history. In contrast, Hu Zong-xian harassed Wang Cui-qiao due to drunkenness. While this matter has not been recorded by his aides, it has been circulated in the legendary novelettes, simulant huaben and zhanghui fiction, which made Hu Zong-xian became a tainted hero. Nowadays, Gao Yang reinterpreted this history from the perspective of Heteroglossia. He recognized Hu Zong-xian’s merits and regarded Wang Cui-qiao as a heroine in The Savage Hero. On the other hand, he turned the case for the pirate Xu Hai and shaped him into a hero of compassion. This thesis explores the various forms of ‘heroes’ from the classic transformation of The Savage Hero.