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Through Racing Goggles

Modernity, the West, Ambiguous Siamese Alterities and the Construction of Thai Nationalism

Bibliographic Data

ID6086692
AuthorsThak Chaloemtiarana (corresponding author)
Year2016
Volume31
Issue2
Pages532-574
Publication date2016-07-30
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Social Issues in Southeast Asia (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0217-9520 • E-ISSN: 1793-2858
PublisherISEAS - Yusof Ishak Institute (PUBLISHER • SG)
DOI10.1355/sj31-2e
OpenAlexW2522591000
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited3

Prince Chulachakrabongse and Prince Birabongse Bhanudej were sent to England to study at Harrow and Eton in the 1920s. They lived as Thai princes among the English upper class and indulged in the pastimes of that class, such as athletics, flying and motor car racing. Bira became a successful race car driver on the White Mouse Racing Team, managed by Chula. He even won the Gold Star, awarded to the best “British” race car driver, in three consecutive years — 1936, 1937 and 1938. His achievements were celebrated in Siam as a sign of national greatness and of Siam’s parity with the West. Racing was and still is closely associated with the nation. Bira’s and Chula’s story contributes to the study of the top-down construction of Thai nationalism. Thai nationalism is not about an armed struggle against colonial oppressors. It is about mastering Western civilization in attempts to appear equal. It is a nationalism closely associated with the monarchy, members of the royal family, aristocrats and bureaucratic servants of the crown

Aesthetics · Art · Modernity · Nationalism · Political science · Sociology · Asian Studies and History · Gender Studies · History · Law · Southeast Asian Sociopolitical Studies · Vietnamese History and Culture Studies

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  • Fueling nationalism

    Open Access•Caroline Schep•National Identities•2022

  • The Ambiguous Allure of the West

    Dipesh Chakrabarty, Rachel V Harrison et al.•The Ambiguous Allure of the West•2010

  • Lords of Things

    Maurizio Peleggi•Lords of Things•2017

Unique citing works3
Citations per year0.43
Citation span2019 - 2025 (7)
Citation velocityrecent
Highly citedNo
Citation typesNeutral: 3

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