Reproduction of Ghosts and Supernatural Powers Through the Protagonists "Thurs" in Boy's Love online novel “Y-DESTINY” as a Populist Culture Media.

Abstract

            The purpose of this research paper was to analyze how ghost beliefs and supernatural powers were reproduced in the Boy's love novel "Y-DESTINY" as a populist cultural medium. This qualitative study employed documentary research as a tool. Furthermore, the concept of cultural reproduction of Ekawit Na Thalang (1989) and Watcharaporn Distapan (2014) were used as a conceptual framework for the study of the text from MoreFIIN's Boy's love novel "Y-DESTINY," all 28 episodes which were published together on December 9, 2020, via www.readawrite.com in the first episode (Part 1)-The End (Part 28).

          As could be seen in the results, the origins of ghosts and supernatural powers in this novel were based on ideas of characteristic traits by birth order which regarded as major theme of the storyline. Those who were born on Thursday were believed to have unique traits distinctive from other days, such as having a sixth sense and loving mysteries. It could be observed that, the storyline and events of the story were determined by the author as follows the protagonist's personality qualities, such as leveraging the characters' belief in ghosts to create a supernatural "destiny." In terms of the reproductive issues, it could be observed that the author reproduced the belief in ghosts and supernatural powers in five different ways, namely 1) reproducing ideas about ghost characteristics 2) reproducing beliefs about ghost abilities 3) reproducing spiritualism, 4) reproducing ouija belief, and 5) reproducing reincarnation. According to the Boy’s Love novel tradition, this novel followed the Thai culture's belief in ghosts to create problems and obstacles for the protagonist to work together. Instead of "Brahma," ghosts and supernatural power played a role in determining the character's life. The story was considered remarkable due to the cultural mix. It also served the reproduction of ghost stories and supernatural powers via "populist media" created by technological advances. This demonstrated how, in today's populist society, technology and belief coexist to grow.