Introduction
The main characters of Nella Larsen’s novel Passing are two black American women whose identities are primarily performance-based and who can pass as White. Clare Kendry and Irene Redfield, the novel’s protagonists, take advantage of the fact that they “pass” as white. There are both psychological and physical repercussions of the white passage notion. While the two characters, Irene and Clare, are both black women who are dissatisfied with their lives and share similar lifestyles and imbalanced personalities, they differ in their view on the security environment and their motivation to pass as white.
Discussion
There is a shared history between these two ladies, who are both half African-American and half white and grew up together during a time of heightened racial tension. Irene and Clare are uneasy and dissatisfied with their lives as black Americans, so they both consider passing as white. Despite Clare’s integration into white culture, they are also portrayed to have remarkably similar lifestyles. They also have imbalanced personalities, which is proven by Clare when she tells Irene that she lacks a sense of duty or proper morals and bursts into tears (Larson 68). Both Clare and Irene suffer at the hands of an unjust society, but Irene’s inability to see it for what it ultimately leads to her mental collapse.
Despite their superficial similarities, the novel’s two protagonists could not be more different from one another. The parallels between Irene and Clare end because they both have skin light enough to pass for white. Clare resolves to improve her life by deceiving her spouse and the general public about her heritage. In contrast, Irene accepts her black heritage and remains in the neighborhood where she and her family were raised. Ultimately, the two are at odds with one another because of their divergent views on what constitutes a secure environment, which encourages Irene to keep her distance from Clare but spurs Clare’s efforts to reconnect with the black community. Irene’s sense of safety is determined by the actions of others, including her husband, her offspring, and the larger black community. Her preferences determine Clare’s sense of safety, and her sense of self is not tied to anyone else’s. She is willing to hurt anybody or do anything to satisfy her needs.
Clare’s desire to ‘pass’ was motivated by her yearning for a better life and the advantages of being associated with white people. Clare abandons her mulatto identity and passes as white by adapting her appearance (Larsen 34). She marries John Bellew, whom she affectionately refers to as “Jack” because of the association he has come to have with wealth to achieve her goals of greatness and social prominence. On the other hand, Irene rejects the privileged path and refuses to forsake her ancestry, despite the social consequences. Irene is portrayed as a strong individual who denies the company of those who despise a part of her and who treats her ethnicity with contempt. For instance, “You got me wrong there, Mrs. Redfield. Nothing like that at all. I do not dislike them, I hate them” (Larsen 124). The quotation proves that John Bellew, Clare’s husband, was racist.
Conclusion
Only Clare, unencumbered by social norms or the pressures of a group identity, chooses to take charge of her own life and future in this novella. Irene is portrayed as afraid of being on her own, unlike Clare, who threatens the society in which she resides since she can move freely between worlds without committing to one of them (Larsen 144). Irene refuses to face the facts and insists on maintaining her status quo of accepting the socially constructed reality that provides her with comfort and predictability.
Work Cited
Larsen, Nella. “The Complete Fiction of Nella Larsen: Passing.” Quicksand and the Stories 2001. Pp. 100-150.
