Rajadhiraj : From Annals to Novel

Abstract

The research entitled Rajadhiraj: From Annals to Novel was conducted to investigate Rajadhiraj literary work in the Thai societal context of The Early Rattanakosin period and study the novel characteristics of Rajadhiraj literary work, printed version, by Chaophraya Phraklang (Hon). Presentation of results was done through descriptive analysis. The results of the study showed that Rajadhiraj literary works, both the original copy in Mon language and the Thai language copy, were changed by different techniques as detailed below. Rajadhiraj was a story of the Mon kings, ranging from the reign of King Farua to that of King Thammachedi. It was a true story with clear historical evidences. However, there was an extension of contents in some annals which converted the story to Razadarit Ayedawpon story by Phaya Thala, a literary work honoring the kings and Thammachedi Katha tale that had a narrative characteristic more than annals. Rajadhiraj by Chaophraya Phraklang (Hon) had more details than other versions written in Mon and Burmese languages. Components of the story were changed to make it look clearly like a fiction. Especially the order of events were readjusted to make the story have a plot like a fiction in order to present key idea about the great king of kings which was relevant to Thailand’s societal and political contexts. This led to changes in other components which were influenced by Chinese annals-based novels of that period more than influence of the western world. Thus Rajadhiraj literary work by Chaophraya Phraklang (Hon), printed version, had fictional characteristics in terms of theme, plot and characters.