Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

“My Eyes Are Open But My Lips Are Whispering”: Linguistic And Symbolic Forms Of Resistance In Thailand During 2006-2016, Khorapin Phuaphansawat

Doctoral Dissertations

Today, resistance and popular movements are rarely concerned with the traditional institution of monarchy, especially constitutional monarchies. Against this backdrop, the exceptional political power of the present monarchy in Thailand provides an excellent portrayal of how the divinity, perpetuality, and inviolability of royal authority become gradually undermined. Through discursive analyses of formal and informal texts, interviews, and ethnographic fieldwork, I argue that resistance against the monarchy has become central not only to the emergence and development of the massive political “Redshirt” movement, but also to Thailand’s political transition. Four points make my case: First, recent anti-royalism has emerged from existing …