Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: This paper explores recursive journeys of a blood-borne virus through a Derridean hauntological lens.I trace the spectral presence of the hepatitis B virus and its antigen, and their ghost-like routes, returns and transitions, deploying a structure that reflects Derrida's concept of time out of joint.I first describe the virus's multiple disembodied journeys in the 1960s: from its unknown presence in Indigenous Australian blood collected for population genetics studies, through its translocation in serum samples to the United States, and its manifestation as a novel antigen in a lab.I then present the virus's pre-lives (its inadvertent and unknowable transmissions before the 1960s), and its post-lives (as a diagnostic tool and a vaccine).Finally, I demonstrate a temporal collapse in the meeting of twenty-first century virology with Indigenous deep history.This hauntological analysis demonstrates how viruses serve as spectral entities, traversing boundaries of time, place, and embodiment; how they contribute to modern medico-scientific understanding and practices, and how they retain ancient traces that raise ethical challenges.
Source: Anthropological Theory
Author: Michelle Bootcov
Institution: UNSW Sydney
Language: English
Subfield: Cultural Studies
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,650
OpenAlex ID: W4413231633