《險路勿近》（No Country for Old Men）這本小說讓讀者充滿困惑：麥卡錫明顯採取西部類型傳統的敘事架構，為何刻意違背讀者期待將之瓦解？本文認為，麥卡錫的西部敘事挑戰美國西進邊疆神話以及例外主義自我認同，二位主角的西部英雄形象先後被麥卡錫拆解，讓熟悉類型規則的讀者一再受挫，但這正是作者敘事策略欲達到之目的：讀者越想要盡情消費西部類型一向承諾的經典結局，越會深刻被提醒類型傳統裏英雄角色的諷刺與荒謬。本文分四部分，第一部分耙梳美國主流西部歷史與邊疆神話的關係，考察西部類型的歷史演進與文化意識型態；第二部分探討麥卡錫作品質疑美國例外主義的精神，印證二位主角前進當代荒野邊疆後承受的痛楚與折磨；第三部分檢驗麥卡錫解構西部英雄形象的策略，藉由戲劇性的鋪陳與醞釀，召喚類型讀者對主角的認同與情感，進而翻轉讀者期待，刺激讀者思考英雄榮光不再的意義；第四部分為結語，麥卡錫透過小說暗示，美墨邊境的毒品交易與毒梟戰爭固然造成巨大浩劫，但是問題根源不在邊境之外，而是積弊已深的社會，當代美國亟需思考侵蝕自身內部的問題，才能面對未來。

No Country for Old Men has been puzzling the reader since its publication in 2005. Why does its creator, Cormac McCarthy, make use of the generic tradition of the Western and then dismantle it, violating the reader's expectation of a just and satisfying ending? This paper suggests that McCarthy's Western narrative aims to challenge the ingrained American self-identity which has been built on the frontier myth and exceptionalism. The traumatic suffering of the two protagonists, Moss and Ed Tom Bell, has poignantly spoken volumes of the devastating effects of wars caused by American expansionism. McCarthy then deconstructs the image of the two cowboys: while Moss's super masculine heroic style can save neither himself nor his family, Bell keeps avoiding a showdown with the villain. The quicker the reader wants to consume a fast-paced story and enjoy a comforting closure, the more he or she will be reminded of the fragility and irony of the status of the hero in the Western narrative. The novel also presents the violence and bloodshed caused by the day-to-day cross-border drug trade and drug wars between Mexico and America. But McCarthy also makes it clear that the source of corruption does not come from the outside; instead, America should think about what is eating away its society so as to reconsider its relationship with the world and face the future.