Go to contents

'The King and I’ and Thailand

Posted October. 17, 2016 07:43,   

Updated October. 17, 2016 07:45

한국어

The movie “The King and I” is about a love story between the King of Siam (now Thailand) and Anna, a British widow who taught English to the king’s children. It is famous for the scene where the king and Anna dance in a large hall and the background music of “Shall We Dance?” Margaret London wrote the novel based on the memoir of Anna Leonowens who taught English for the royal family of Siam in the 19th century, and the musical and film versions of the novel were released in 1951 and 1956, respectively.

The movie, which comes to mind to many middle-aged Koreans who grew up watching Hollywood movies when they think of Thailand, is banned in Thailand. The musical is also prohibited for exaggerating and distorting the royal family. It is partly true that the movie was made from Westerners’ perspective – Orientalism or perceiving Asia as an exotic but less developed place. Rama IV, the king in the movie, was the great grandfather of King Bhumibol who passed away on Thursday.

King Bhumibol, who ascended to the throne in 1946, had a romantic love story like the movie. When he was studying in Switzerland, he had a car accident and lost the sight of his right eye. He fell in love with the girl who took care of him and got married to her. The world’s longest-serving monarch played a central role whenever the country was in a crisis including repeated coups. Thailand is in deep sorrow at the death of the much respected king. The Thai government declared a year of mourning and asked to change the home match place for the World Cup qualifier in Asia scheduled to be held in a month.

The death of King Bhumibol is expected to bring major changes to Thailand. Crown Prince Maha Vajiralongkorn, 64, who divorced three times and got married four times, does not command the respect of the people. Even if he becomes the king, he is unlikely to command the strong power that his father did. Though the military that took power in a coup in 2014 supports him, the crown prince supports former premier Thaksin Shinawatra who was driven away in 2006, which could increase political instability. Two months ago, Japanese Emperor Akihito said he wanted to abdicate for health issues. Royal families in Asian countries who used to be the anchor of their country seem to fade away gradually.



고미석기자 mskoh119@donga.com