Image of King Rama II in Memory Narratives Literary Works and Historical Anecdotes

Abstract

King Rama II is remembered as a distinguished artist. However, there are also other memory narratives that portray his image in various aspects. This article aims to examine these portrayals in two distinct genres of memory narratives: seven literary texts and seventeen historical anecdotes. The results find that the literary texts depict four different images: a warrior king, an internationally esteemed monarch, a royal artist and patron of the arts and culture, and a righteous ruler. These representations have a shared characteristic of presenting the image of the ideal Thai monarch, in accordance with established Thai literary eulogistic conventions. However, there are also discrepancies within the selection of events, which serve as a lens into the shifting notions of kingship and international relations. In the case of historical anecdotes, two dominant images emerge: the impassioned young man and the untarnished heir to the illustrious Chakri dynasty. These portrayals are intrinsically linked with the characteristics of the historical anecdotes, relating to court personal stories. On the other hand, they shed light on the promotion of the “pure-born (Ubhato Sujati)” notion and the royal rank “Chao Fa”. Consequently, these two types of memory narratives collectively underscore the significance of King Rama II within Thai society and highlight the inextricable interplay between his commemoration and the prevailing zeitgeist of each historical epoch.