Interpellated Dialogue: Exploring Power, Language, and Ideology in Mamet's Oleanna

David Mamet’s Oleanna has long been recognized as a provocative dramatization of authority, language, and ideological conflict within academic institutions. This study examines the play using the theoretical framework of Louis Althusser’s concept of interpellation, focusing particularly on how linguistic practices shape subjects, reinforce hierarchies, and redistribute power between the professor, John, and his student, Carol. While much researches have explored the gendered and institutional tensions of the play, fewer studies have traced the evolution of linguistic primacy as the central mechanism through which power is negotiated and reversed. The study addresses three primary questions:(1) How does Mamet illustrate the process of ideological interpellation through the characters’ linguistic exchanges?(2) In what ways does language function as an instrument of dominance in Act I, particularly in John’s academic discourse? ,and (3) How does Carol’s adoption of a new linguistic community in Acts II and III enable her to challenge, subvert, and ultimately overtake John’s authority? Through textual analysis, this study finds that language in Oleanna operates not merely as communication but as a material force capable of positioning individuals within ideological structures. John’s reliance on academic jargon initially secures his authority, yet the instability of this discourse becomes evident as Carol appropriates a more assertive ideological lexicon. Her linguistic transformation leads to a complete reversal of power, demonstrating that speech acts can reconfigure subjectivity and institutional control. Ultimately, this research concludes that Mamet uses the characters’ shifting linguistic strategies to expose the fragile, constructed nature of authority itself.