New paradigm narrative and construction of meanings of Thai television drama with cross-media content

Abstract

This research aims (1) to study the intertextuality between a Taiwanese television drama called “The Fierce Wife” and a Thai television drama called “Mia (Wife) 2018”; (2) to study the intercultural communication, values, ideology, and construction of the meanings of the “wife” of the television drama called “Mia (Wife) 2018” through the components of the new paradigm narrative; and (3) to study the audience’s perception and interpretation of the meanings of the “wife” of “Mia (Wife) 2018”. The research is qualitative, and the main methodologies are textual analysis of the above-mentioned dramas and in-depth interviews with the audience of “Mia (Wife) 2018.”

The findings are the following. One, the intertextuality between the Taiwanese television drama “The Fierce Wife” and the Thai television drama “Mia (Wife) 2018” transfers all of the components of the new paradigm narrative (plot, theme, conflicts, characters, settings, dialogues, points of view, and special symbols), including values and ideology in all forms of convention, extension, reduction, and modification. Only the themes (the main theme is love, and the sub-theme is morality), point of view (the wife’s point of view), and conflict (family conflict) are transferred via convention. Two, both dramas communicate the values and ideology related to women and the family in a pro-social manner; that is, monogamy. The intertextuality also transfers the concepts of authoritarianism and feminism. In terms of authoritarianism, the dramas present the man’s power, represented by the husband’s influence on the female characters (wife, mistress, and colleague (his ex-girlfriend)). With regard to feminism, the dramas present liberal feminism and radical feminism through the wife. In terms of the perception and interpretation by the audience, they accept that values and ideology presented in the drama are true in Thai society but they are not passive. The audience learns from the dramas and applies that knowledge to their real life in the same way or better ways than the wife in the drama. Three, the construction of the meanings of “wife” in “Mia (Wife) 2018” represents the wife in the digital era of 2018, which is different from the past. In contrast with the traditional archetype of a wife in Thai society, which values the roles and duties of the wives in serving their family and being dependent on their husband, the wife in “Mia (Wife) 2018” represents a by-design wife who is independent and plays the roles of wife and mother perfectly while freely choosing her way of living. Audience members who are Thai wives in real life feel that wives in Thai society should be the same as the wife presented in “Mia (Wife) 2018” in terms of their roles and duties with regard to their families. However, at present, most of wives also work together with their husbands to earn a living. They also believe that husbands should help them with taking care of children and doing household chores, rather than leaving the entire burden for their wives to bear. Meanwhile, the audiences who are men (both single and married) and single women believe that a wife should not only perform her duties in the same way as the wife presented in “Mia (Wife) 2018” but also take good care of herself.