Image of Marginal People in Young-Adultûs Literature

Abstract

This research aims to analyze the image of marginal people in young adult literaturethrough the study of 20 literary works. The study revealed the image of marginal people inthree contexts, geographic location and racial context, economic context, and socioculturalcontext. Marginalized people in the geographic and ethnic context involves hilltribe people,the Lay, and Vietnamese refugees. Hilltribe people are deprived of educational opportunities.They have no knowledge of public health, do farming according to the folk wisdom (thePagayaw group) and grow opium (the Hmong). They love their group, take pride in theirethnicity and tolerate insults. The Lay are a marginalized group that has a simple lifestyle andlives in harmony with nature. Vietnamese refugees are non-nationality citizens who are not granted basic rights as Thai citizens and their freedom in life pursuit is limited. Marginalizedpeople in the economic context include beggars, vagabonds, and laborers. Beggars orvagabonds are distanced from resources, physically disabled with no way to earn a living.Laborers are poor people without working skills and have low quality of life. Marginalizedpeople in the sociocultural context involve orphans, disabled children, and Thai Muslims.Orphans or children who are neglected by their parents are most susceptible to lack of loveand affection. They are abused by some people in society and are treated as objects. Disabledchildren are pitiful, inferior in their ability and suffer from ill fate. Thai Muslims are a groupof people who are different from Thai Buddhists in terms of their way of life, race, religion,and culture.Keywords Image, Marginal people, young adult literature