Accordingly, this study concludes that the portrait of an ' ideal' younger brother, as represented in Ramakien, is one of unwavering loyalty, unquestioned obedience, unshakable respect and unflinching deference toward their older brother. Furthermore, these three younger brothers can be characterized as 'ideal' younger brothers because they are depicted never deviating from their younger brother behavior, even when presented the opportunity to stray, and consistently demonstrate all four traits in their relationship with their older brothers. Accordingly, it is concluded that a role of younger brother in Ramakien can be defined using these behavior traits. This study, which explores the role of younger brother through an analysis of the original Thai language text of King Rama I's rendition of the epic, finds there is common behavior among the three characters with respect to their relationship with their older brothers, behavior which can be defined in terms of four behavior traits: loyalty, obedience, respect and deference. Three younger brother characters from Ramakien are examined in detail: Phra Lak, Sukhrip, and Phiphek. This thesis selects the role of the younger brother for analysis. Characters and themes from Ramakien can be seen in many aspects of Thai culture and history and have been used to classify 'ideal' roles and relationships. Ramakien, the Thai rendition of the Indic epic Ramayana, is an important part of the Thai literary tradition.

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