Otaku in Thai Society: The History of “Cultural Marginalized People” in A Case Study of Manga Fans 1970s-2010s

Abstract

This research aims to study the history of Otaku, a group of people who consume interests, particularly in anime, manga, pop music, cosplay and Japanese idols in Thai society. Those are defined as “cultural marginalized people.” It focuses on a case study of manga fans and aims to study 3 objectives (1) to explain the meaning and story of “Otaku” in Thai society, (2) to explain the process of turning “Otaku” to be ““cultural marginalized people, (3) to explain the social spaces where Otaku communicated, negotiated, represented themselves in one way. This research is also conducted by historical methods to analyze texts, such as magazines, newspaper, books, thesis and websites, with the concepts of Sociology and Anthropology to analyze those texts. The findings are that when Japanese comics came to Thai society, the favorite consumption of manga fans were resisted by a group of people creating the mainstream discourse that reading manga was nonsensical and disgusting. As a result, the manga fans were defined as “Cultural Marginalized People”. In this situation, the people who obsessed with Otaku cultures and private businesses relating to the translation of Japanese comic to Thai language created social spaces such as activities and online platforms for Thai people who favored Otaku subcultures. They could meet, do activities and present their own identity in order to negotiate with the mainstream society which expelled them and described them as “cultural marginalized people.”