A study of the role of "Anucha", the younger brother, in Ramakien and parallels with Thai historical narrative

Abstract

Ramakien, the Thai rendition of the Indic epic Ramayana, is an important part of the Thai literary tradition. Characters and themes from Ramakien can be seen in many aspects of Thai culture and history and have been used to classify ‘ideal’ roles and relationships. This thesis selects the role of the younger brother for analysis. Three younger brother characters from Ramakien are examined in detail: Phra Lak, Sukhrip, and Phiphek. This study, which explores the role of younger brother through an analysis of the original Thai language text of King Rama I’s rendition of the epic, finds there is common behavior among the three characters with respect to their relationship with their older brothers, behavior which can be defined in terms of four behavior traits: loyalty, obedience, respect and deference. Accordingly, it is concluded that a role of younger brother in Ramakien can be defined using these behavior traits. Furthermore, these three younger brothers can be characterized as ‘ideal’ younger brothers because they are depicted never deviating from their younger brother behavior, even when presented the opportunity to stray, and consistently demonstrate all four traits in their relationship with their older brothers. Accordingly, this study concludes that the portrait of an ‘ideal’ younger brother, as represented in Ramakien, is one of unwavering loyalty, unquestioned obedience, unshakable respect and unflinching deference toward their older brother. A second part of this thesis analyzes the way in which royal younger brother figures have been portrayed in Thai historical narratives, primarily the royal chronicles, but also latter-day narratives. Three royal younger brothers from Thai history are examined: Ekathotsarot, Prince Surasih, and King Pinklao. With varying degrees of intensity, these three historical royal younger brothers are portrayed in the historical narratives as consistent in their behavior of being a loyal companion, an obedient servant, a respectful attendant and a deferential follower of their older brothers, the same qualities identified as defining the ‘ideal’ younger brother in Ramakien. A parallel analysis of Ramakien and the Thai historical narratives indicates that the narratives have strong literature-like aspects, which has an impact on historical focus, a focus that clearly trends toward ‘idealization’ of historical royal figures. In addition, a comparison between Ramakien and Makhan Sen’s translation of Valmiki’s Ramayana shows that the role of younger brother in Ramakien is presented as being more ‘idealized’, perhaps even ‘super-idealized’, as compared to this version of Valmiki’s Ramayana. This ‘super-idealization’ is also seen in an examination of the pictorial depictions of Ramakien in the mural paintings along the Galleries of the Temple of the Emerald Buddha. The findings from this study indicate that an important aspect of Thai society has been the desire to project and uphold the ‘ideal’, as represented by the behavior depicted in the younger brother characters in Ramakien and paralleled in the portrayal of the royal younger brothers in the Thai historical narratives.