World literature in English as a means of cultural enrichment for Thai university students

Abstract

Literature is an important experience of humankind, an embodiment of national, transnational and universal sensibilities and cultures and it offers lessons that we can learn about each other. This presupposition forms the central point of departure of this thesis. The aim of this study is to propose a "World Literature in English" course for the university curriculum in Thailand. This course is designed (1) to advocate world literature in English as a means to gain insights into diverse cultures and to promote intercultural and global understanding, (2) to promote an integration of literature and language in the literature classroom, and (3) to contribute to the personal and intercultural development of students. The justifications for implementing this course are based on documentary analysis and empirical research. The main discussions include the historical development of concepts of world literature, approaches to literature education both in L1 and L2 contexts, the historical and sociocultural background of Thai students, and analysis of the current situation and practice of literature teaching in Thai universities. In order to explore the current practice of literature teaching, empirical fieldwork was conducted at five state universities in Thailand, using the methods of documentary analysis and semi-structured interviews. The 48 participants in this study were 15 university lecturers, 31 university students in the field of literature, and two Thai scholars in related fields. The main findings show that until recently, few universities have had more than marginal awareness of the significance of literature from diverse cultures. Nevertheless, positive responses especially from students call for an alternative course in the literature curriculum in Thai higher education. Accordingly a detailed 15 week course is proposed, including a selection of texts in different genres and a sequence of pedagogic activities. It can be seen that the implications and applications of this study directly contribute to the Thai context. Nevertheless, this study hopefully makes some contributions to L2 contexts in general, particularly in terms of literature curriculum design.

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