Abstract: The traditional society is based on the family system and the patriarchal ethics is the core of the family system culture. Since the May 4th New Culture Movement in 1919 that ushered in the literary writing against the feudal patriarchy, the multi-dimensional image of “father” has been created in a series of novels set in family life to deconstruct and criticize the disadvantages of the patriarchal ethics, such as Old Milord Gao, Jin Quan, Jiang Jiesan, Sir Yao Sian, Bai Jiaxuan, and Lu Zilin. Either bullying, stubborn or insidious, these characters have become typical in Chinese modern family novels.

Key words: modern and contemporary Chinese novel, family novel, ethics, patriarchal authority