Until the father-and-son two-generation view came about, Dosan's image was well established as a "Sengoku Daimyo who rose in the world from an oil-seller to a Daimyo"; because of this, in various folklores, oral literatures and creative works, including the ones produced after the two-generation view came about, Dosan was most often portrayed as "Dosan SAITO" in accordance with the single-generation view.
親子二代説が登場するまでは「油屋から身を立て大名にまでのしあがった戦国大名」という道三像が定着していたことから、各種の民間説話・伝承や、二代説登場後のものも含む多くの創作作品においては、一代説を前提とした「斎藤道三」というキャラクターが語られることが圧倒的に多い。