Amidst calls for epistemological diversity within intercultural communication in this talk I contest the notion that the field has reached an epoch of criticality or that the field has turned critically. In doing so, I problematise whether a dialectical approach for intercultural communication can move the field towards a holistic lens that analyses the ways discursive interactions are mediated by wider structural forces. I build on recent developments within the field of applied linguistics in calling for a (re)engagement with dialectical thought in order to provide an analytic of how people, languages and cultures are (re)produced within everyday life through an engagement with contemporary political economy. Implications for research and teaching on Language and Intercultural Communication will be discussed in the talk.