《紅樓夢》一般被不自覺地視為表現單一價值觀的「獨白型」小說，其中所蘊含的是作者主觀的藝術同情和褒貶，因此，人物論述往往呈現出極端化的傾向，尤其薛寶釵的部分更被有意地加以錯誤的解釋。然而，《紅樓夢》實屬多聲部平行共構的「複調型」小說，其中的人物個性乃是被客觀地發現並藝術地表現出來的，有襯補關係而無對立褒貶。本文即針對薛寶釵論述中失衡已久的幾個核心問題重加探索，擇取嫁禍論、金釧兒事件、尤三姐與柳湘蓮事件三段情節，與「任是無情也動人」、〈臨江仙‧詠柳絮〉的詩詞釋義，置諸敘事整體中加以分析，以釐清一般對薛寶釵行為與性格的負面定調，而確認其為世俗人文主義者的特質。最後，探究「左釵右黛」之論述主流的形成因素，說明除了「同情弱者」的心態之外，其中更蘊藏了一種「面具恐懼」的閱讀心理，這是出於曹雪芹對釵黛不同的敘事手法，而讀者又不自覺地將現實人際經驗加以投射所致。

This article discusses some core issues in the character discourse on Xue Bao-chai: the episodes of the jia-huo ( 嫁禍，Xue’s transferring blame to Lin) event, the Jin-chuan (金釧兒) case, and the Iou San-jie ( 尤三姐) and Liou Xiang-lian ( 柳湘蓮) case. I also reinterpret the hidden meaning of the verse “even heartless is fascinating”( 任是無情也動人). Emphasizing that these segmented episodes should be put in a comprehensive and consistent context, I argue against a well-known view attributing Xue Bao-chai a negative character. I contend that she is rather a secular humanist, then discuss some reasons why the “pro Dai, contra Chai” attitude becomes dominant among the readers and interpreters of The Dream of the Red Chamber: Besides readers’ sympathy for the weak, a psychology of “mask-phobia” also plays an key role, wherein readers project their own experience into Ciao Xue-qin ( 曹雪芹)’s differing description techniques on Dai and Chai. On the whole, I contend that The Dream of the Red Chamber is too often treated implicitly as a monotonous narrative with a single value judgment, which supposedly represents the author’s aesthetic and emotional preferences. As a consequence, many criticisms about the characters of The Dream of the Red Chamber tend to be extreme and partial, especially the discourses about Xue. By contrast, I propose that the novel is a polyphonic narrative, where characters are objectively discovered, organically developed, and described with art. Wherein characters complement and contrast each other but there is not necessarily opposition between them, let alone the author’s approval or criticizing.