Mother Songs: Contemporary Didactic Literature

Abstract

In this article, the term “mother songs” is defined as Thai country songs with lyrics written about mothers. These mother songs are also recognized as contemporary didactic literature and reflect the social values concerning the family institution in Thai society. Fifty “mother songs” were analyzed and the findings reveal two main types of didactics: didactics relating to mother’s kindness to her children and didactics relating to a child’s gratitude to his/her mother. The didactics relating to a mother’s kindness to her children are songs in which writers aim to convey the message about mother’s love, sacrifice, attention, and patient devotion to her children. Simile and narrative techniques are used in these songs. They also try to convey the meaning of the kindness of a mother as a teacher who teaches her children to insist on goodness, as a teacher who teaches her daughters’ appropriate behaviors, and as a teacher who educates her children, which is in accordance with the Buddhist teaching concerning the duty of a good mother. In the didactics relating to a child’s gratitude to his/her mother, the song writers aim to teach children, particularly those who are to leave their rural homes and move into the city to get work, to have gratitude to their mother by sending back money to support her and their families. The song writers also try to reflect how much mothers care about their children and how this feeling motivates the children to build up their own fortune, so they can go back to their mothers’ arms. It can be said that “mother songs” are contemporary didactic literature, which plays an important role in promoting and inheriting the social values concerning a child’s gratitude to his/her parents for all children, particularly to those living in a rural society.