Racial identity is a concept that is heavily clouded in ambiguity, subjectivity, and controversy. How an individual chooses to identify within a racial group versus what racial category society places upon him or her can either vary drastically between each other or match exactly. Regardless of the result, determining race is neither an exact science nor a definitive choice. In Nella Larsen’s Passing, the idea of “passing”, both in the literal and figurative sense of the word, highlights the fluidity and complexity of racial classification. The protagonists Irene Redfield and Claire Kendry continually struggle with the disparity between their physical appearance and their mixed racial heritage.
In terms of the figurative meaning of the term, “passing” refers to the notion of physically being able to classify as a certain race though on the contrary socially. This idea of “passing” as a certain race carries a multitude of socio-economic advantages and disadvantages that affect how an individual perceived by society and reflect various social interactions with different racial groups. In the case of Clare, she is initially able to pass as white, allowing her to avoid racial discrimination upon black people and acquire an elitist social status in Europe. Clare’s ability to be identified as white affords her a higher class ranking amongst the darker-skinned Harlemites in New York; she is indirectly assimilated into white culture through her marriage to her white husband, Jack. That being said, Larsen makes it known that although one may pass as another race, that does not ostracize them from the culture and heritage of their predominant race(s). This is seen in Clare’ insistence in participating in the Negro Welfare League’s dance, even at the dismay of Irene. Even through her acceptance as a white woman by the white community, Clare still feels the need to connect with her black roots and embrace the culture and community that she strongly identifies with. Her resistance against total assimilation into white culture further displays the ongoing battle of balancing multiple racial identities. Larsen shows that a mixed heritage complicates how a mixed individual perceives and interacts with the cultures that embody his or herself. Both Clare and Irene both struggle with bridging the gap between the two identities and it is further strained by Jack’s realization of their true racial origins and his retaliation at Clare’s deception.
On the other hand, Larsen also analyzes the literal means of “passing” and how each woman seems to only be “passing on” in their lives. Clare is painted as a transient character because she is forced to conform behind this second identity that she has inadvertently created for herself. She is not able to fully commit to either black or white and she is unsuccessful in finding a happy medium between the two categories, so in these ways Clare is only passing by in her life and her relationships with others. In Part I of the novel, Clare is painted as a rather passive character, choosing to hide her black identity from her husband in order to salvage both her marriage and the future of her daughter where as in Part II Clare is more upfront about what she wants in her life and how she chooses to interact with other social groups. Furthermore, the idea of passing also applies to Irene’s character development within the novel as she counter Clare’s racial indecisiveness by choosing to embrace her black heritage; even choosing to remove herself from Clare because of how Clare hides her actual race. Irene passes Clare in how she sees herself in the world, as Irene is confident in her identity as a black woman and distances herself from Clare because of the danger in Clare’s passing for a white woman.
In both the literal and figurative sense of the term, passing brings to mind the question of how fluid can race be and whether or not race is more heavily rooted in biology or in sociology. Especially in a modern-day era of liberalism, self-identification and surpassing typical norms is becoming ever more present within this current generation (racially, sexually, religiously, etc.). Racial passing is something that most if not all racially mixed individuals encounter on a day-to-day basis and Larsen strives to point out that what may appear on the surface may not reflect what is really happening internally.
