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Literature, Theory, and the Politics of Criticism in Contemporary Thailand
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 23 October 2020
Extract
In the aftermath of Britain's Nuptial Extravaganza celebrating the Union of Prince William and Kate Middleton, comparisons between that event and the profile of the monarchy in Thailand have emerged. Occupying a central and highly visible position in the public domain, Thailand's King Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX, r. 1946–present) is widely held in great esteem. Yet the silencing of republican sentiment in the run-up to the royal wedding in London echoes the measures deployed with increasing regularity and rigor in Thailand under article 112 of the country's penal code, a law against lèse-majesté that effectively suppresses all open criticism of the Thai monarchy. In 2009 an all-time high of 164 lèse-majesté cases were tried in Thailand's Court of First Instance (“Article 112”). The Thai historian and public intellectual Somsak Jeamteerasakul, among others, has argued that these measures create a climate of fear around the discussion of the place and role of the monarchy in contemporary Thailand. This climate also has a bearing on the production and study of literature, on literary analysis, and on approaches to literary and cultural theory in Thailand.
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