Khun Chang Khun Phaen - Contemporary Status

Contemporary Status

Almost every Thai knows the story of Khun Chang Khun Phaen. Most children have to memorize and recite extracts at school.

Thailand's literary establishment has been rather cool towards Khun Chang Khun Phaen, probably because of the work's origins in the folk tradition and consequent lack of refinement. In addition, feminists have criticized the story for celebrating Khun Phaen as a promiscuous lover, and making Wanthong a tragic victim.

Kukrit Pramoj opened his study of the poem with the remark: “At present there are some knowledgeable people who have expressed the opinion that Khun Chang Khun Phaen is an immoral book and a bad example which should be burnt or destroyed, so no one may read it from now on.”

Kukrit Pramoj is one among many enthusiasts who value Khun Chang Khun Phaen as a great story and as a unique repository of old Thai culture. Other prominent defenders include:

• Sulak Sivaraksa (social commentator, activist): “This immortal story is number one in Thai literature, and cedes nothing to the major literary works of other nations."
• Rong Wongsawan (novelist, essayist): “I like Khun Chang Khun Phaen and still read it today. It's the literary work which best reflects the life of the Thai. In simple words, the voice of the people."
• Naowarat Phongphaibun (national poet): “Every Thai person over 30 should read at least four or five books, starting with Khun Chang Khun Phaen.”
• William J. Gedney (linguist): “I have often thought that if all other information on traditional Thai culture were to be lost, the whole complex could be reconstructed from this marvellous text.”