Abstract
Southeast Asia is not an homogeneous region. That is why it can hardly been analysed as a whole and therefore must be divided into several groups. Concerning the issues related to the relations between the state and the peasantry, South East Asia countries belong mainly to two groups. According to Norman G Owen in The Emergence of Modern South East Asia, travelers could find "two main patterns of political and economic life" in the eighteenth century. I will discuss further this point of view in order to emphasize a key aspect of this topic: contrasts among the different countries of the area. The other key point to mention is the role played by the colonial power. Did colonialism impact on the structure of power and the relations between the state and the peasantry? Is it possible to stress differences according to the rulers - mainly France, Holland, Spain and Great Britain -?
