Thammasat University

This course provides an interdisciplinary exploration of the social and political history of Thailand from pre-Ayutthaya (1351-1767) to the Thonburi/Bangkok period (1767-1782) to the modern nation-state of the present time. Emphasis is on the modern era when the country confronted western colonization, and its reactions from within, as well as a series of nationwide reforms, and the process of change and persistence of the nation-state up to the present.

This course examines the principles and fundamental theories of Thai dance. It also provides an introduction to the basic elements of Thai music, stylistic characters, and brief overview of the history of Thai music. Practical experience complements lectures to provide a better understanding of Thai dance and music culture and an appreciation of Thai cultural identities. The course culminates in a group public performance.

The course provides a study of major school of thought, debates, and theoretical approaches in the discipline of international relations (IR). It discusses the main arguments and interventions of IR theories, the differences and similarities between them, and their accounts of such important concepts as state, anarchy, war, change, cooperation, capitalism, norms, identity, culture, order and justice and so on. It also puts IR theories into the intellectual context or the development of so-called ‘great debates’ since 1945.