Doctor Jessica Whyte


 

Biography

Jessica Whyte is a Lecturer in Cultural and Social Analysis, and a member of the Institute for Culture and Society at the University of Western Sydney, Australia. She has published widely on theories of sovereignty and biopolitics, critical legal theory, critiques of human rights and contemporary continental philosophy. Her current research is on the emergence of the “right to intervene” in the practices of the new activist humanitarian NGOs of the 1970s, and its transformation into a legitimising discourse for state militarism. Her book, Catastrophe and Redemption: The Political Thought of Giorgio Agamben, will be published by SUNY in 2013.

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Qualifications

PhD. Centre for Comparative Literature and Cultural Studies, Monash University Awarded: October 14th, 2010.

  • Thesis Title: “‘Starting From This Uncertain Terrain’: The Political Thought of Giorgio  Agamben.”
  • Supervisors: Dr. Alison Ross and Dr. Nina Philadelphoff-Puren.
  • Examiners: Prof. Eric L. Santner, University of Chicago and Prof. Costas Douzinas, Birkbeck College, University of London.
  • Awarded the Monash University Mollie Holman Doctoral Medal 2010.

Social Science (Hons.) RMIT University, 2003

  • Thesis Title: “Life in the Camp: Giorgio Agamben and Australia’s Mandatory Detention of Asylum Seekers”, (First Class Honours).
  • Supervisor: Prof. Rob Watts.

1996-2002: Bachelor of Arts (Journalism) RMIT University

 

Areas of Research / Teaching Expertise

Human Rights and Sovereignty
Humanitarian Intervention
Critical Legal Studies
Critical Theory
Contemporary European Philosophy
Biopolitics
Radical and Revolutionary political thought and movements

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Awards and Recognition

2010 Monash University Mollie Holman Doctoral Medal for best PhD thesis in the Faculty of Arts.

2010 School of English, Communications and Performance Studies Graduate Research Achievement Prize for the best publication in the School. (Awarded for the article “Particular Rights and Absolute Wrongs: Giorgio Agamben on Life and Politics”, published in Law and Critique.)

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Selected Publications

Books

Jessica Whyte, Catastrophe and Redemption: The Political Thought of Giorgio Agamben, SUNY, New York, Forthcoming 2013.

A.J. Bartlett, Justin Clemens and Jessica Whyte (eds.) What is Education? Edinburgh University Press, Forthcoming 2013.

Alex Murray and Jessica Whyte, The Agamben Dictionary, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, 2011.


Book Chapters

Jessica Whyte, “‘The King Reigns but He Doesn’t Govern’: Thinking Sovereignty and Economy with Agamben, Foucault and Rousseau”, in Tom Frost (ed.) Giorgio Agamben: Legal, Political and Philosophical Potentialities, Routledge, Forthcoming 2013 (Accepted December 2012.)

Jessica Whyte, ‘“Is Revolution Desirable?” Michel Foucault on Revolution, Neoliberalism and Rights’ in Ben Golder (ed.) Michel Foucault: Law, Power, Rights, Routledge, London, 2012.

Jessica Whyte, “‘The Work of Men is Not Durable’: Giorgio Agamben, the Haitian Revolution and the Rights of Man”, in Simone Bignall and Marcelo Svirsky, Agamben and Colonialism, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, 2012.

Jessica Whyte, “Human Rights: Confronting Governments?: Michel Foucault and the Right to Intervene” in Stone, Wall, & Douzinas, (eds.). New Critical Legal Thinking, Routledge, London, 2012.

Alex Muray and Jessica Whyte, “The Sovereign and the Lexicographer”, in Alex Murray and Jessica Whyte (eds.) The Agamben Dictionary, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, 2011.

Jessica Whyte, “‘Starting from this Uncertain Terrain’” in Sharpe, Noonan and Freddi (eds.) Trauma, History, Philosophy, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, Newcastle, 2008, pp. 247-266.

Jessica Whyte, “‘Its silent working was a delusion’”, in Clemens, Heron and Murray (eds.) Law, Life, Language: The Work of Giorgio Agamben, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh, 2008, pp. 66-81.

Jessica Whyte, “‘We are Human Beings’: The Woomera Breakout”, in Katherine Ainger and Graeme Chesters, (eds) We are Everywhere, The Irresistible Rise of Global Anticapitalism, Verso, London, 2003, pp. 430-36.


Refereed Journal Articles

“Daniel Palmer and Jessica Whyte, "'No Credible Photographic Interest': Photography and Surveillance in a Time of Terror", Philosophy of Photography, Vol.1, Issue 2, November 2010, ISSN: 20403682, pp. 177-195.

Jessica Whyte,  “A New Use of the Self’: Giorgio Agamben on the Coming Community”, Theory and Event, Vol. 13:1 2010.

Richard Bailey, Daniel McLoughlin and Jessica Whyte, “Editors’ Introduction: Form of Life: Giorgio Agamben, Ontology and Politics”, Theory and Event, Vol. 13:1 2010.

Jessica Whyte,  “Criminalising ‘Camera Fiends’: Photography Restrictions in the Age of Digital Reproduction”, Australian Feminist Law Journal, Vol. 31, December 2009, pp.99-120.

Victoria Sentas and Jessica Whyte, “Law, Crisis, Revolution: An Introduction”, Australian Feminist Law Journal, Vol. 31, December 2009, pp. 3-14.

Jessica Whyte, “‘I Would Prefer Not To’: Giorgio Agamben, Bartleby and the Potentiality of the Law”, Law and Critique (2009: 20:3), pp. 309-324.

Jessica Whyte, “Particular Rights and Absolute Wrongs: Giorgio Agamben on Life and Politics”, Law and Critique, (2009:20) pp. 147-161.

Jessica Whyte, “Contesting Reality After the Neo-Cons”, Cosmopolitan Civil Societies, Vol. 1, No. 2, 2009, pp. 199-206.

Carlos Fernandez, Meredith Gill, Imre Szeman and Jessica Whyte,  “Erasing the Line; or The Politics of the Border”, Ephemera: Theory and Politics in Organisation, Volume 6, No 4, November 2006.

Jessica Whyte, “Critiquing the Violence of Guantanamo”, in Milner, Ryan and Savage (eds.) Imagining the Future: Utopia and Dystopia', Arena Journal, Melbourne, 2006, pp. 123-135.

Jessica Whyte, “Modello Guantanamo”, in Conflitti Globali Vol 4: Inernamenti cpt e Altri Campi, ISBN: 88-95029-04-6, 2006, pp. 51-61.


Non-refereed Articles

“A right of privacy and photography in public” (With Anne Marsh, Mark Davison and Melissa Miles), Australian Intellectual Property Law Bulletin, 2012.

“‘Intervene I Said’ Human Rights and Social Justice” Overland 207, Winter 2012.

“On the Politics of Suffering” Arena Magazine, June 2012.

‘Awakening the Giant’, Adbusters 99, December 2012.

“‘The Long Night of the Left is Drawing to a Close’: Philosophy and the Idea of Communism”, Overland, 204, Spring 2011.

“Perverting Photography” (with Dr. Melissa Miles), Arena Magazine, December-January 2011.

“Photography as Crime: Mapping Anxiety in the Public Sphere” (With Prof. Anne Marsh) Art Monthly, 235, November 2010,

“Contesting Realities”, Overland, 188, 2007.

“This is Not Australia”, Natural Selections (Documenta 12 Journal Project) 2007.

“Agents of Transformation”, Overland, 184, 2006.

“Our Greatest Shame”, Overland, 177, 2004.

“Temporary Protection – Permanent   Uncertainty”, (With Greg Marston) Australian Policy Online, 19 June 2003.

“Normalising Razor Wire”, Arena Magazine, Issue 61 October - November 2002.

“Economic Migrants”, Desert Storm Woomera Publication / Interactivist Info Exchange, July, 2002.

“Restore the Commons! Break the Borders”, Green Pepper Borders Edition, Amsterdam, 2002.

“Woomera: Australia’s Best Kept Secret”, Chain Reaction, edition 87, May 2002.

“Finding Humanity in Woomera?”, Z NET, April 2002. 

“Not in Our Name: Refugee Detention Puts the Lie to Our Egalitarian Myth”, Arena Magazine, Issue 52, April - May 2001.

 

Edited Collections

Richard Bailey, Daniel McLoughlin and Jessica Whyte, “Form of Life: Giorgio Agamben; Ontology; Politics”, Special Issue of Theory and Event, Vol. 13:1, 2010. 

Victoria Sentas and Jessica Whyte, “Law, Crisis, Revolution” Special Issue of the Australian Feminist Law Journal, Vol. 31, December 2009.

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Memberships and Engagement

Institute for Culture and Society
Australasian Society of Continental Philosophy
American Political Science Association
Melbourne School of Continental Philosophy

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