Overview

In the 1970s, the Thai state organized the Village Scout movement to counter communist insurgency. The movement was soon used to thwart growing demands for democratic reform, recruiting five million members to become the largest mass organization in Thai history, and, mobilized by the military-controlled media, helped topple a civilian government and restore military rule. This book bridges both the macro and micro levels of analysis to place the dynamics of a national political movement within a richly detailed account of its working at the village level.

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9780231103916

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Reviews

With this chilling, meticulous study of how ideology begets hysteria, Bowie sets a new standard in the anthropology of the state. She traces the origins and growth of a conservative social movement and plumbs the popular, emotional appeal of its central rite of initiation. Bowies eyewitness account of this ritual of indoctrination and the politics of class in a developing nation informs the ongoing debate about hegemony and agency.

Author Information

Katherine A. Bowie is associate professor of anthropology at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

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