ภาพลักษณ์ของหญิงรักร่วมเพศที่ปรากฏอยู่ในภาพยนตร์เอเชียตะวันออก / เกศินี ดำริสถลมารค = Representation of lesbian images in East Asian movies / Kesinee Dumrisathollamark
The purpose of this research is to study the images of lesbian which appears in East Asian movies releasing in 1997-2011.By study of the narrative structure, The character and lesbian role in society from 20 of East Asian Lesbian movies along with In-Depth Interview the specialists and Documentary Research. The research reveals that the images of lesbian in East Asian movies are constructed through the narrative’s elements. The main themeof the movies is often associatedwith the struggle forlove,faithin ideal love, and the searching for a lesbian’s identity. The conflict in the movies often happens between family members and conflict in the mind of the characters who has to choose between love with a woman or follow the socialorder. Most of the settings are private spaces that signify the deep relationship between lesbianism. Majority of the movies rely on the symbolic system in communicating the forms and relationship between characters. The narrative usually uses the omniscient point of viewtogetherwith the main character’s point of view togive a better understanding of the main characters’ emotion. The film generally presents adult lesbians’ characters who must fight for their love and social basis. The characters often have an unclear appearance of being a homosexual and often show as a bisexual. The characters have variety relationships both good and bad. For bad relationships, it is usually with family members and male counterpart.These relationships reflect the social values that emphasize family and praise the man above woman, which is common in East Asian cultures. The cause of being a homosexual for the characters is usually initiated by the intimacy between them. Thesocial roleand the image oflesbian ineachculture are mixed in both good and bad images. For the good images, characters are good person and have honor in a society. The bad images, characters are a murderer or psychosis and do not have important roles in society. There are different images of lesbian and their role in society. It usually depends upon whether that society is a multicultural society and how much of cultural openness in each country and era.
