NAVIGATING CULTURAL AND RELIGIOUS BOUNDARIES: INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION IDENTITY IN NOVEL RUSNEE BY MONTRI SRIYONG AS A REFLECTION OF THAILAND'S MALAY-MUSLIM COMMUNITY

Abstract

Thailand's Deep South has experienced protracted violent conflict rooted in tensions between state-imposed Thai-Buddhist identity and Malay-Muslim cultural heritage. Despite extensive research on political and security dimensions, intercultural communication and identity negotiation through literary analysis remain underexplored. Correspondingly, this study examines how cultural symbols function as identity markers and analyzes intercultural communication patterns in Montri Sriyong's novel Rusnee, which portrays Thailand's marginalized Malay-Muslim community. Employing qualitative critical literary analysis, this research integrates cultural identity theory, critical discourse analysis, and narrative theory. Systematic close reading identifies cultural symbols and examines silence as communication, trust erosion, and the transmission of intergenerational trauma. Furthermore, cultural and religious symbols function as powerful markers, creating us-versus-them boundaries, with hijab-wearing triggering state surveillance and discrimination. Meanwhile, communication patterns reveal silence as strategic resistance, community leadership collapses due to a trust deficit, and trauma transmission across generations. In addition, characters navigate contradictory identities through constant boundary management between religious obligations, cultural traditions, and state expectations. Overall, this research contributes Southeast Asian perspectives to intercultural communication scholarship, demonstrating the literature's dual role as a societal mirror and a cross-cultural bridge. Additionally, findings offer implications for educational curriculum development and policy formulation in ethnically diverse regions experiencing protracted conflicts.