III 'Gender' is not enough: the need for a feminist consciousness

In the final commentary, Cynthia Enloe thinks again about Gillian Youngs' question: why do many IR academics find it so difficult to take feminist analysis seriously? She argues there are two fears: the first, for men, concerns how their own relationships with masculinity are affecting what they see as a ‘serious’ topic of investigation; the second is the fear of appearing feminized by colleagues making a judgement on the topic's seriousness. Cynthia Enloe argues that ‘gender’ alone is insufficient for transforming IR into a more reliable and useful discipline. What is needed is a feminist consciousness informing work on gender.