Male femininity in Thai among men who identify with non-normative male roles Pavadee Saisuwan Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy March 2016 School of Languages, Linguistics and Film Queen Mary University of London Declaration I, Pavadee Saisuwan, confirm that the research included within this thesis is my own work. I attest that I have exercised reasonable care to ensure that the work is original, and does not to the best of my knowledge break any UK law, infringe any third party’s copyright or other Intellectual Property Right, or contain any confidential material. I accept that the College has the right to use plagiarism detection software to check the electronic version of the thesis. I confirm that this thesis has not been previously submitted for the award of a degree by this or any other university. The copyright of this thesis rests with the author and no quotation from it or information derived from it may be published without the prior written consent of the author. Signature: Date: 2 Abstract This study investigates the construction and presentation of gender identity among men who identify with non-normative male roles in Thailand, including both kathoey - male-to- female transgenders - and gay men. Kathoey and gay men are marginalised from normative conceptualisations of gender and sexuality in Thailand. The goal of this study is to identify how Thai non-normative men use language to position themselves within the Thai sex/gender inventory and to describe how language participates more broadly in the indexation of gender identity. Data were drawn from the eight months of ethnographic fieldwork in Bangkok. During this time, fourteen Thai non-normative men were observed and recorded in a variety of interactional contexts, including individual sociolinguistic interviews and unstructured casual encounters with friends and work colleagues. This study focuses on two linguistic variables – vowel lengthening and self-reference terms. Analyses indicate that vowel lengthening is used by kathoey and gay men as part of stance-taking. At the interactional level, it intensifies the force of the epistemic and affective stances. Through its repetitive use, the interactional meanings become established as an index of affected and entertaining personalities, and male femininity. These characteristics match the stereotypes of kathoey and gay men in Thai society, and hence provide the ideological link for vowel lengthening to become associated with kathoey and gay men. Self-reference terms are used by kathoey and gay men both to construct gender and avoid presenting gender. Analyses demonstrate the significance of speech context, which determines and delimits the possible self- reference options. Several social factors, not only gender, have to be taken into account for the selection of appropriate self-reference. The findings are significant as they show how Thai non-normative men draw upon the linguistic resources available to all Thai speakers and make use of particular linguistic features for their own gender purposes. 3 Contents Declaration ........................................................................................................................ 2 Abstract ............................................................................................................................. 3 List of figures ..................................................................................................................... 7 List of tables ...................................................................................................................... 8 Transcription conventions ............................................................................................... 10 Acknowledgements .......................................................................................................... 11 Chapter 1 Introduction .................................................................................................... 12 1.1 Language and Gender .......................................................................................... 12 1.2 Stereotypes and heterogeneity of Thai non-normative men ................................. 17 1.3 Research gaps ...................................................................................................... 20 1.4 Research questions .............................................................................................. 24 1.5 Outline of the thesis ............................................................................................. 26 Chapter 2 Thai men who identify with non-normative male roles .................................. 29 2.1 Normative gender roles in Thai society ................................................................ 30 2.2 Thai system of three sexes/genders ..................................................................... 34 2.2.1 Buddhist account of “third sex/gender” ..................................................... 34 2.2.2 The definition of kathoey ........................................................................... 36 2.3 Gender and sexuality in Thai society .................................................................... 39 2.3.1 The emergence of the gay concept ............................................................ 40 2.3.2 The system of four sexualities .................................................................... 43 2.3.3 The unclear distinction between gender and sexuality ............................... 45 2.4 Kathoey and gay men in contemporary Thai context ............................................ 50 2.4.1 Popular understanding of kathoey and gay men ......................................... 50 4 2.4.2 Research on kathoey and gay men ............................................................. 56 2.4.3 Research on kathoey and gay men’s linguistic practices ............................. 62 2.5 Research on transgenders and homosexuals in other cultures ............................. 65 Chapter 3 Methodology ................................................................................................... 70 3.1 Ethnography ........................................................................................................ 72 3.2 Access .................................................................................................................. 77 3.3 Participants .......................................................................................................... 82 3.3.1 The Undergraduates .................................................................................. 83 3.3.2 The Postgraduates ..................................................................................... 87 3.3.3 The Professionals ....................................................................................... 89 3.3.4 Individual participants ................................................................................ 92 3.4 Data collection techniques ................................................................................... 94 3.4.1 Participant observation .............................................................................. 94 3.4.2 Interviews .................................................................................................. 97 3.4.3 Self-recordings ........................................................................................ 101 Chapter 4 Vowel lengthening .................................................................................. 104 4.1 Vowel length and vowel lengthening in Thai ..................................................... 104 4.2 Data selection and coding ................................................................................. 110 4.3 Distribution of vowel lengthening ..................................................................... 114 4.4 Vowel lengthening and stance-taking ................................................................ 121 4.4.1 Stance-taking .......................................................................................... 122 4.4.2 Vowel lengthening as an enhancing tool for stance-taking ...................... 124 4.4.2.1 Epistemic stance intensified by vowel lengthening ...................... 124 4.4.2.2 Affective stance intensified by vowel lengthening ....................... 129 5 4.4.2.3 Epistemic stance intensified via affective stance by vowel lengthening .................................................................. 136 4.5 Vowel lengthening and its association with gender identity of non-normative men ...................................................................................... 142 4.5.1 Interaction and identity ........................................................................... 142 4.5.2 Vowel lengthening and the gender identity of kathoey and gay men ....... 144 4.5.2.1 The stereotypes of kathoey and gay men .................................... 145 4.5.2.2 Vowel lengthening constituting to the stereotypes of kathoey and gay men .............................................................. 149 Chapter 5 Self-reference terms ..................................................................................... 155 5.1 Self-reference terms in Thai .............................................................................. 156 5.2 Data selection and coding ................................................................................. 166 5.3 Self-reference terms in the interview data