The Women’s Inferiority in Contemporary Traditional Thai Wedding Photography

Abstract

This research article aims to study the inferiority of women that appears in photographs of traditional Thai wedding ceremonies. This research is qualitative research. Data were collected from 1) 73 photographs of traditional Thai wedding ceremonies by NP Photography that were published in February 2024, 2) Books, academic papers, journals, research on websites, and 3) Statistical data record tables. The analysis was conducted by examining the photographs and interpreting the frequencies to demonstrate that photographs of traditional Thai wedding ceremonies embed and reproduce the inferiority of women

The analysis was done through 4 main theoretical concepts:

1. The principle of image composition


2. Fashion in Terms of the Communication Process for Image Building


3. Gender roles, considering the activities of women and men that appear in the pictures


4. Inferiorization of Women

The analysis found that 1) in image composition, most figures were male, and men appeared more frequently in left-side and center positions within the photographs; 2) regarding clothing styles, men predominantly wore Western-style suits (jacket and trousers), while women mostly wore two-piece traditional Thai dresses (top and skirt); 3) women wore more accessories than men, including head pieces, glasses, earrings, necklaces, brooches, belts, shoulder ornaments, wrist accessories, and rings; and 4) the activities performed by men were primarily in monk ceremonies, the Khan Maak procession, the bride-receiving activity, and the water-pouring ceremony, while women mostly appeared in the ring-exchanging ceremony and other wedding-day activities.

Therefore, elements within wedding photographs reflect the inferiority of women under social frameworks, positioning women as subordinate, confined to obedience, and deprived of agency in the performance of social activities. Photographs thus function as a medium that reproduces and disseminates the inferiority of women within society.