"Thank God . . . I Thought for a Moment You Were Going to Confess to Converting to Socialism!": Gender and Identity in Deirdre McCLoskey's Crossing

Abstract

"Thank God . . . I thought for moment you were going to confess to converting to socialism! 'critiques McCloskey's account of her transition from a heterosexual male professor of "Chicago school" economics to a female, "free-market feminist." McCloskey's account raises fascinating questions for all feminists regarding both one's definitions of gender, and the institutions and practices which reinforce gender boundaries. At the same time, McCloskey's account is found to be lacking in certain respects. For example, she pays insufficient attention to the implications of gender for rational-choice, free-market economic theories, and she insufficiently contextualizes her definitions of masculinity/femininity to a particular class and race in the late 20th century US.

Keywords:

• Gender Definitions
• Gender Performance
• Social Construction Of Gender
• Rational Choice Analysis
• Heterosexual Masculinity