The sense of place in Kampoon Boontawee's novel A Child of the Northeast

Abstract

This study explores the semi-autobiographical and realistic novel A Child of the Northeast (1987) by Kampoon Boontawee (1928-2003) as an excellent example of sense of place in literature. The novel was first published in the Thai language in 1976 the story however takes place in Isan during the 1930s. Sense of place is found in all fiction however most often regarded as a mere background and left unexplored in literary studies. In this study sense of place is viewed as an individual perspective of a place only gained through attachment over time constructed of particulars perceived through ordinary daily life and evoked and revealed through literary artistry. The objective of this study is twofold, to illustrate the construction of sense of place through an analysis of the novel. The focus taken on community and family ways local food ways and handicrafts is in accordance with issues emphasized in the text. Secondly, this study examines the different literary techniques the writer employs to evoke and reveal the significance of sense of place in the novel. This study argues that sense of place is a fundamental feature in the construction of the novel. According to the finding of this study it is seen how Kampoon Boontawee through, his eye for perceiving the particular in the ordinary, has selectively assembled together particulars that make the ordinary daily life. Seen in aspects such as the villagers compassion and sanuk outlook on life, strong kinship bonds and topophilic affection, ethnic relations, the mixture of religion and beliefs, extensive knowledge of flora and fauna, local wisdom, food ways involving everything from particular hunting ways to specific tastes, as well as the inventiveness and the artistry seen in handicrafts are among the many great contributions to the making of the novel’s rich and complex sense of place. These particulars are made representative of Isan life through universal and timeless themes. Through artistic use of different literary techniques priority is given to the world of the senses in a simple and straightforward narrative that is yet rich and detailed in its faithfulness to the child protagonist. Kampoon Boontawee, while making the survival of everyday remarkable, evokes and reveals the complexity of sense of place through details exquisitely and artfully played out in the realistic and semi-autobiographical novel A Child of the Northeast.