Professor Melanie White
PhD (Carleton University) MA (Carleton University) BA (University of British Columbia)
Melanie is a Sociologist who specialises in classical and contemporary social theory. Born and educated in Canada with a PhD from Carleton University in Ottawa, Melanie teaches into the Sociology program for the School of Social Sciences in the Faculty of Arts, Design and Architecture. She was Deputy Head, School of Social Sciences from 2020-2023 where she held the Education (Learning & Teaching) portfolio.
Melanie has always been fascinated by what we mean by the 'social.' Her听current research considers how competing ideas of sympathy helped to distinguish the social from the biological in the development of the discipline of sociology in 19C France. She has a particular interest in the social theories of Emile Durkheim, Gabriel Tarde, Henri Bergson, Michel Foucault and Georges Canguilhem.听 She is interested in questions about the relations between听habits & creativity, error & uncertainty, and in finding the point at听which the ordinary becomes听extraordinary in everyday life.听She also enjoys rediscovering lost and forgotten thinkers and considering how they contribute to contemporary debates in social theory and our understanding of everyday life.听听
She has published in high-ranking international journals such as , 听补苍诲 . Her听book 听co-edited with Alexandre Lefebvre (University of Sydney) is published with Duke University Press.听
Melanie is also Adjunct Research Professor in the .
- Publications
- Media
- Grants
- Awards
- Research Activities
- Engagement
- Teaching and Supervision
Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada听- Postdoctoral Fellowship, York University, Canada
Canada Research Chair听- Postdoctoral Fellowship, York University, Canada
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2023 听听Award for Excellence in Educational Mentorship, Faculty of Arts, Design & Architecture, Staff Awards, 探花系列 Sydney
2022 听听Award for Excellence in Educational Leadership, Faculty of Arts, Design & Architecture, Staff Awards, 探花系列 Sydney
2019听 听Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy听(SFHEA), UK
2019听 听The Michael Wearing Memorial Award for Excellence in Postgraduate Research Supervision, 探花系列 Sydney
2018听 听 探花系列听Scientia Education Academy Fellow
2017听 听听Vice-Chancellor's Award for Teaching Excellence (General Category), 探花系列 Sydney
2016听 听 Excellence in Postgraduate Research Supervision Award,听ARC Postgraduate Student Council, 探花系列 Student Life and Dean of Graduate Research School, 探花系列 Sydney听
2015听 听 Dean's Award for Teaching Excellence (General Category), Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, 探花系列 Sydney
2006听 听听Nominated,听Symons Award for Excellence in Teaching,听Trent University, Canada
2002听 听听Teaching Excellence Award,听Carleton University Students' Association, Carleton University, Canada
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Research Areas:听听Classical and contemporary social theory, political theory, citizenship studies, sociological theory
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Current Research Projects
Bergson's Social and Political Thought
In collaboration with , this project develops the political, social and religious philosophy of Henri Bergson, an early twentieth century French philosopher.听
The Animal Question in Society
This project considers how social thinkers听such as Auguste Comte, Jean-Marie Guyau, and Alfred Espinas understood the relation between human and nonhuman animals in order to听interrogate how the social and the biological were conceptualised in 19C France.
Unsentimental Sympathies
Through rich everyday examples, this project demonstrates how the idea of 'fellow-feeling' is easily converted into an unsentimental sympathy.
Future Research Projects
Life, Vitalism and Society
This project considers the underpinning vitalism of three 20C sociological thinkers in the German tradition: Georg Simmel, Alfred Schutz and Max Scheler.
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Affiliations and Membership
Adjunct Research Professor, Carleton University,
Member de la听Soci茅t茅 des amis de Bergson
Adjunct Research Professor, Carleton University,
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My Research Supervision
Nell Whittaker (PhD Social Sciences)听Love as a Moral Emotion.听(Primary Supervisor:听Melanie White:听Secondary Supervisor: 听Professor Jan Breckenridge). Sociology, 探花系列 Sydney.
Connie Byrne (PhD Social Sciences) Social (Re)Production: Theories of Value in a Financialising Neoliberalism听(Joint Supervisors:听Melanie White听补苍诲 Dr. Andrew Clarke). Social Sciences, 探花系列 Sydney.
Rickie-Lee McLauren-Smith (PhD Social Sciences, Sociology) Human Value, Children and Environmental Care听(Joint Supervisors: Melanie White and Dr. Andrew Clarke).听Sociology, 探花系列 Sydney.
Dovi Seldowitz (PhD Social Sciences, Sociology) Emancipatory Inclinations of a Religious Elite: Toward a鈥疦ew Sociology of the Sermon听(Primary Supervisor: Melanie White; Secondary Supervisor: A/Professor Geoffrey Levey).听Sociology, 探花系列 Sydney.
Madelene Veber (PhD Social Sciences, Sociology)听The Sociology of Error听听(Joint Supervisors: Professor Timothy O'Leary and Melanie White),听Sociology, 探花系列 Sydney.
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PhD completions
Roxarne Moon听(PhD Social Sciences, Sociology)听Folktales and the Sociology of Belonging听(Primary Supervisor: Melanie White; Secondary Supervisor: Dr. Yao-Tai Li).听Sociology, 探花系列 Sydney.
Chelsea van Deventer (PhD Social Sciences, Anthropology) (2024) 听(Primary Supervisor: Professor Vicki Kirby; Secondary Supervisor: Melanie White) Sociology, 探花系列, Sydney.
Roberta Pala (2023) 听(Joint Supervisors: Professor kylie valentine and Melanie White; Secondary Supervisor: Professor: Matthew Kearnes), Social Policy Research Centre, 探花系列 Sydney.
Joe Alizzi (2021)听听(Primary Supervisor: Professor Claudia Tazreiter; Secondary Supervisor: Melanie White), Sociology, 探花系列 Sydney.
Mary Cantrill听(2020)听(Joint Supervisors: Professor Elizabeth Fernandez and Melanie White),听Social Work, 探花系列 Sydney.
Hawthorn James King (2019)听听(Primary Supervisor: Melanie White, Secondary Supervisor: Professor Paul K. Jones), Sociology, 探花系列 Sydney. Nominated: Best HDR publication, Dean's Research Awards (2018).
Megan Catherine Rose听(2018)听听(Primary Supervisor: Melanie White, Secondary Supervisor: Professor Paul K. Jones), Sociology, 探花系列 Sydney.听Recipient:听Arts & Social Sciences Dean's Teaching Award - Rising Star听(2018),听Recipient of the Vice-Chancellor's Teaching Excellence Award听(2020).
Jacqueline Dalziell (2018) (Primary Supervisor: Professor Vicki Kirby; Secondary Supervisor: Melanie White), Sociology, 探花系列 Sydney. Recipient: Best HDR publication, Dean's Research Awards (2018).
Na'ama Carlin (2016)听听(Primary Supervisor: Melanie White;听Secondary Supervisor: Professor Miguel Vatter) Sociology, 探花系列听Sydney, Recipient of the Vice-Chancellor's Teaching Excellence Award - Early Career听(2019).
Catherine Tuey听(2015)听(Joint Supervisors: Professor Alan Hunt, Carleton University, and Melanie White, 探花系列 Sydney), Sociology, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada.
Daniel Braun (2014)听(Joint Supervisors: Professor Bruce Curtis, Carleton University, and Melanie White, 探花系列 Sydney), Sociology, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada.
Will Johncock (2013) 听(Primary Supervisor: Professor Vicki Kirby; Secondary Supervisor: Melanie White) Sociology, 探花系列, Sydney.
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My Teaching
Teaching Areas
Classical and Contemporary Social Theory
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Current Teaching
ARTS1870听Rethinking the Social(T1听2025 & T2C 2025)
ARTS2876 Understanding the Self (T1 2025)
ARTS4268听Methodologies in the Social Sciences听(T1 2025)
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Honours Supervision (Completed Projects, Last 10 years)
Sarah Namazie (2024)听A Consideration of Grief as a Moral Emotion in the Anthropocene (Sociology, 探花系列 Sydney)
Nell Whittaker (2023)听A Feminist Engagement with Masculinist Critiques of Marriage (Sociology and Anthropology, 探花系列 Sydney)
Paige Ayton (2021) Farming with Dogs:听A qualitative study about how Australian male farmers reflect on working with dogs (Sociology and Anthropology, 探花系列 Sydney)
Zara Khan (2020)听Order your essay today! Investigating听the relationship between contract cheating services and student behaviours (Criminology, 探花系列 Sydney)
Dovber Seldowitz (2020)听Women鈥檚 Leadership in the Contemporary Hasidic Community: Its Prevalence, Development, and Relation to Hasidic Religious Discourse听(Sociology and Anthropology, 探花系列 Sydney), 探花系列 Medallist
Maya Ghattas (2019)听In the Image of Death: A Nature Not Equal to Nature.听(Sociology and Anthropology, 探花系列 Sydney), 探花系列 Medallist
Ellen Jacobs (2019)听Disciplined Autonomy: A Synthesised Concept and its Holistic Analysis of Crime Prevention Techniques.听(Sociology and Anthropology, 探花系列 Sydney)
Ida Ioannou-Marsh (2017)听Political Purity and Innate Politics (Sociology and Anthropology, 探花系列 Sydney)
Victoria Rae (2017)听Where have all the experts gone?听 A sociological consideration of post-truth and non-traditional news outlets (Sociology & Anthropology, 探花系列 Sydney)
Yvette Kiddle (2016)听Imitation to Educate Children: 听What Happens to Liberty?听(Sociology & Anthropology, 探花系列 Sydney)