Dossier

Most readers of Louis Althusser first enter his work through his writings on ideology. In an important new essay tienne Balibar, friend and colleague of Althusser, offers an original reading of Althussers idea of ideology, drawing on both recently published posthumous writing and Althusser's work on the Piccolo Teatro di Milano. Balibars essay uncovers the intricate workings of interpellation through Althussers essays on the theater. If debates on dialectical materialism belong to a distant history, Balibar suggests, the question of ideology remains crucial for thinking the present. The issue includes commentaries on Balibars essay from five influential scholars who engage critically with Althussers philosophy: Judith Butler, Banu Bargu, Adi Ophir, Warren Montag, and Bruce Robbins. This issue reanimates Althussers concept of ideology as an analytic tool for contemporary cultural and political critique.