From State Citizenship to Market Membership: Follow the Metaphor of

Burmese Labor Reproduction in Thailand.

Dr.Sustarum ThammaboosadeeCollege of Interdisciplinary Studies

Thammasat University

IntroductionThe Importance of Multi-sited Ethnography

‘Follow metaphor methodology’Exhibit the metaphor of capitalism

reproduction requires the understanding of the connection between material space, perception space and imaginary space

What is Multi-sited Ethnography

There is no isolated sphere anymore.

Globalizing EthnographyConnectivity of meaning

across space and culture.

Follow Metaphor- MethodologyMetaphor- The social construct of meaningUnder Globalization- Metaphor are not belong to

one single space or culture.Flexible metaphor and meaningUnder stand how ‘structure of meaning was

constructed ‘ via various sites-space.

Brief Transformation of Global Productions

Capitalism’s Mode of Production

Reproduce

Labour Power

Production’s Relations

Class

St

rug

gleKeynesian

Fordism Welfare State

Oil Crisis/Stagflation

Neoliberal’sRelations of Production’s

Plaza

Accord/

Washing

ton

Consens

usAccumulation

By Dispossession

Unprotected LabourerMigrant WorkerCompetitive Low Cost

Schumpeterian Workfare State

The Demise of Fordism Welfare and the Emerging of Post-Fordism Workfare.

1.       The common perception of the definition of welfare refers to fringe benefit and long term employment.

2.       The term welfare refers to the quantitative of exchange value rather than intrinsic value.

3.       Welfare benefit base on the sense of belonging in the society. The implication is that the term cannot be isolate from the idea of citizenship.

4.       To consume ‘welfare’ reflect the logic of the division of production and reproduction space.

5.       Due to the mass production and mass consumption. No matter the lesser degree of the welfare that contributes to the ideal type. It always imitates the proto-type of Utopia.

Follow the metaphor of perception

Follow metaphor of the imaginary spaceRemittance is a part of the labor power cost,

the single-site methodology suppose that the worker will reproduce themselves by buying their life back after work. During the age of flexible accumulation, the remittance process reflects the process of time-space displacement of reproduction.

Multi-sited Mythology “The story of the rural villagers who migrate and send money

back to their parents had been fascinated her. Most of the money will be invested for the private property rather than invest in agriculture business. She came from relatively wealthy family in her village. It is not the story of someone who ran away from the killing field. She absorbs the story of Thailand from her older brothers and sisters. Her journey to Thailand has been well prepared. The agents who came from the same village with her pay the bribe to Thai immigrant police and contact for the job vacancy in Samuthprakarn. Her first six months in Thailand has followed the organized routes. Her plan to go back her home town is in next four or five years. Although, there are many job opportunity here but her imaginary space always locate in the opposite side of the border”

Concluding Remark: The contribution of follow metaphor methodology.

Methodology should not be considered as the rigid instrument

It has to be modified as the reflection of the altering human relations in society

The implication is that ‘Follow the Metaphor’ methodology would contribute in the sorting of local and global relations and potentially investigate for the recommendation of the better society in our dynamic world.