Liao T'ien-ting, a popular folk hero on Taiwan from the period of Japanese occupation, is really only the main trunk from which the tale has grown. The real contents of the story are the folkways and customs of the people of Taiwan, interspersed with some allusions to current events.
在故事中，廖添丁只是一個主幹，真正的內容卻是吳樂天對台灣民俗風情的介紹，並穿插了政經時事。由於內容包羅萬象，並合乎時代的演變，反而成為他講古的一個獨特風格。