Retorik: Jurnal Ilmu Humaniora was founded in 2001 with the aim of seeking a new scientific ethos in the humanities with an interdisciplinary, political, and textual spirit. It was, and still remains, the aspiration of Retorik to foster humanities research with a scientific ethos capable of responding to the needs of the Indonesian society that continues to strive to become more democratic, just, and pluralistic in the aftermath of long authoritarian rule, under social, economic, and political conditions still characterized by inequality. In its interdisciplinary spirit, Retorik has drawn insights from an array of disciplines, most notably, political economy, language (including semiotics), and psychoanalysis, to that end. As various managerial requirements stifle the passion for academic and intellectual life, while simultaneously in the broader Indonesian society, the ideals of Reformation are frustrated by political and economic oligarchy that continues to exist with impunity, Retorik affirms the need to defend a scientific ethos at present, for the future. In light of its aims, Retorik promotes original research that makes advances in the following areas: 1. Historically-informed studies that engage with the conditions, contexts, and relations of power within which the humanities were born, and with which the humanities are entwined. 2. Dialogues with various disciplines in the humanities and social sciences, including history, sociology, psychology, and anthropology. 3. Interdisciplinary research pertaining to critical pedagogy, religious and cultural studies, art studies, and new social movements. 4. Experimentation with new forms of knowledge that foster the formation of a more democratic, just, and plural society. 5. Studies that are sensitive to the vital role of both technology and art in contemporary society and seek to understand the ways in which art, technology, and economy together contribute to the formation of contemporary cultures and societies.