Monster Theory in Phaya Pla: Women, Otherness, and Sexuality in 1987-1997

Abstract

This article aims to study a monster character in relation to sexuality, especially sexuality in 1987-1997 through the novel Phaya Pla (1988) by Kaew Kao. The analysis was based on the framework of the monster theory and otherness.  The study discovered that the novel pointed that women’s sexual desire, which was one of sexual expressions, was forced into the state of otherness due to the influence of the conservative idea of womanhood that existed before 1987. This prompted middle-class women to view sexuality as an embarrassment that should be refrained from in public. However, the novel Phaya Pla pointed out a negotiation with such conservatism through a monster character. Despite his hideous appearance, the female character felt she wanted to get close and study the monster. Such circumstance indicates the female attraction towards sexual desire. A woman may have been taught to despise it, but her desire persists. This was due to the rapid growth of the liberalism movement in 1987 which valued personal satisfaction and freedom of sexual expression.  The novel was written around that time and so the clash between the two sides was seen through the monster and the female protagonist. Not only did this novel question the stigma over sexual expression which had subjugated women, but it also challenged the dominance of masculinity. Furthermore, the role of the male monster protagonist, who had control over female’s sexuality, was reduced. The Novel Phaya Pla shows that sexuality is personified as a monster, which is on the basis of disorder, obscurity, and otherness.