West of Westerly: exceptionalism in Australian Studies

Charting a theme of exceptionalism, this article attempts to situate Australian Studies within a West Coast and Indian Ocean context. It looks in a westerly direction rather than the more prevalent Pacific coast outlook of studies on Australia. Beginning with a consideration of the journal Westerly, it follows networks of Australianists from the west through the teaching of Australian literature and history, and especially the pioneering work of Bruce Bennett, John Hay, Tom Stannage as first wave Australianists, before speculating on generational renewal. The article discusses the zeitgeist generated by the 1988 Australian bicentennial but argues that a distinct form of regionally based interdisciplinarity took root in the west. The attempt to triangulate Australian Studies through Perth, Brisbane and Melbourne in the early 2000s produced a remarkable series of publications through the Journal of Australians Studies. The article concludes on an optimistic note following the establishment of the Australian Studies Network at the University of Western Australia in 2019