Chen Yan has emerged as an outstanding novelist thanks to his rich experience in theatrical literature. His latest novel, The Protagonist, focuses on the heroine Yi Qin’e’s forty-year on the stage,and creates a group of characters living in obscurity under the social changes of the times, portraying a broader spectrum of life and society beyond the domain of drama and conveying his profound observations on life,the times, society, and the world. The epic artistic nature of the novel and the interplay between the fate of the characters and the social changes taking place at the time in the novel, along with Chen Yan’s deep insight into the complexity of humanity are the keys to the successful presentation of the art and ideology of The Protagonist.