Between Stigma and Star: Women in Thai and Korean Literature

Abstract

In a hierarchical society, literature provides a window on the way in which culture governs the social – and sometimes political – construction of women's fidelity. This article explores how fidelity is socially embodied, regenerated and even imagined in literature by analysing two literary epics, Khun Chang Khun Phaen from Thailand and Chun Hyang Jeon from Korea. In analysing the two works side by side, the study examines the interplay between women and ruling ideologies. Focusing in particular on the heroines of the works, the authors assess why Wanthong, the heroine of Khun Chang Khun Phaen, is stigmatized as unfaithful in Thailand, whereas Chunhyang, the heroine of Chun Hyang Jeon, is a star and role model for righteous women in Korea.