Race During The Harlem Renaissance: Uniformity In America

The main reason Clare is an outsider is because she is “passing” as a Caucasian. The act of “passing” is a very interesting concept that can be quite troubling. “What is troubling about the concept of racial “passing” is that it necessitates placing people of mixed ancestry in one racial category over another” (Nisetich 2013). This is exactly what Clare is doing with her life, she is saying she’s part of a race that she really isn’t. She has even taken it as far as fooling her husband, John Bellew. They became a couple because he is a wealthy, white business man. On the other hand, John is an extremely racist man. This is shown from his comments when he had lunch with: Clare, Irene, and Gertrude. On this day, is when Clare realized she’s going to be in a lot of trouble when John finds out the

     In Nella Larsen’s Passing, Irene Redfield and Clare Kendry show us a great deal about race and sexuality in the 1920s. Both are extremely light-skinned women of African-American descent. However similar they appear to be, their views on race, a very controversial issue at the time, differ significantly. Clare chooses to use her physical appearance as an advantage in America’s racist and sexist society, leaving behind everything that connects her to her African-American identity. She presents herself as an object of sexual desire, flaunting herself to gain attention. Irene is practically the opposite, deciding that she wants to remain with the label of being black. She is subtle with her

Passing tells a story about Clare Kendry, a light skinned mulato woman who lived with her white aunts and passed as white. Clare then married a to a rich white man named Jack Bellew and never told him about her African ancestry. This story is told from Irene Redfield’s first point of view. Irene Redfield was a long friend of Clare who also was a light skinned mulatto. In contrast of Clare, Irene lived as a proud African American woman who married to a successful black man named Brian and lived on Harlem.

The Harlem Renaissance was a turning point for many African Americans. A vast amount of literature was created specifically for this group during this era. It was a period when the African American "was in vogue" and "white thinkers and writers were devoting a considerable amount of attention" to them (Taylor 91, 90). For the first time, African Americans were being told that it was okay to be proud of who they were. This new consciousness and self-awareness was prominent in many works of literate, but several writers began exploring the darker side of this movement with literature that concentrated on the negative aspects of race relations in America. Nella Larsen's novel Passing concentrates on this

By developing unsteady characters, Larsen communicates how simple it is to escape one’s appreciation of themself. Clare breaks the tragic mulatto stereotype, but never has the chance to identify to a particular race. While she passes as white, Clare still seeks comfort from her friend Irene who is from the African American community. In Irene’s mind, Clare has become a mysterious double of herself due to their contrasting lives they lead. Irene is obsessive and envious of Clare. She destroys her own self by psychologically ruining herself, thinking that Clare is having an affair with her husband, Brian. While openly discussing racial passing, the book also secretly analyzes gender passing. Irene’s connection with Clare is based on desire, jealousy, and obsession. Both Clare and Irene fail to try to

The women previously talked about on include, unfortunately, white women due to the fact that racial issues were still prominent post Civil War to the roaring 20s. Racial tension between blacks (now freed) and whites intensified as time continued after the Civil War. Yet, much like women, racial equality had its gains and its setbacks, especially in the South. Many of the gains for African Americans came in forms such as free blacks whom were equal to white men, political participation, and artistic and social expression during the Harlem Renaissance. However, the setbacks were much larger defeat, such as segregation and the overall treatment of blacks in the States.

Within any group of people there is always going to be some form of judgment and African American people of the early twentieth century Harlem are no different. Throughout this course students have been immersed into the culture of 1920s Harlem and through this immersion many significant issues have surfaced from the artist of the time period. A major issue that has been repetitive throughout all forms of art during this period is colorism. Colorism which can also be called color conscientiousness, intra-racism, being color-struck, or having a color complex is a long standing epidemic focusing on physical appearance with a large concentration on

Irene’s thoughts and feelings are being filtered through the view of a separate entity: the narrator. And this filtration mimics the alienation caused by racism. Racism is a prominent theme in the novel, from how Clare is received when she pass as white to Clare’s husband’s attitude towards people of black lineage. By examining the role that third person narration plays in Passing, it will be seen how third person narration does not give a voice to the person of narration, but, instead, reinforces the power dynamic create by racism: between the oppressed and the oppressor. The interaction between the narrator and Irene portray race through the perception, silencing, and the breakthrough of oppressed

White supremacy and the Jim Crow laws of the south continued the bondage and did not bring the Promised Land they envisioned. In 1890, white supremacy in the south where ninety percent of African Americans lived until the Great Migration north that gave way to the Harlem Renaissance. Which was a movement in the 1920 's and 1930 's that opened the discussion on a minority in America. This movement gave a voice to civilians who were slaves sixty years earlier. Even though the Harlem Renaissance was not a true renaissance, the period did serve to stimulate African American writing as well as a new view into politics. They expressed themselves in a way that was once considered too radical. African Americans attacked stereotypes and wrote about what it was like being left out of mainstream America. Their influences fostered racial pride and served as examples for promising young African American writers and activists (Henry Rhodes, Yale University).

Clare states, “I’ve often wondered why more colored girls … never ‘passed’ over. It’s such a frightfully easy thing to do. If one’s the type, all that’s needed is a little nerve.” (25). Much like the earlier statement from Irene, blacks have an easier time to pass in white society because that kind of society is always pressured on blacks. White society is like a template on how to live a decent life and many people of color tend to follow it. With a As for Irene, despite her passing color she chooses not to. And in a moment of weakness Irene “was caught between two allegiances, different, yet the same.” (98) the realization of her skin finally struck her, that Irene had twoness. She easily identifies with both, but rather she is tired of the burden of being black. She can receive criticism from both parties and it dwells on her. In any case, she struggles between two worlds of black and white, much like Henry Park in Native Speaker, who struggles between the Korean and American world.

Nella Larsen’s novel, Passing, embodies the cultural and social dimension of 1920's America. America in the 1920s was a culture mostly dominated by prosperity. The 1920s was also the beginning of the most important movement concerning African Americans. One of the most profound contributors to the Harlem Renaissance was Nella Larsen. Larsen's novel is about two light skinned African American women who pass as white.

Racism or racial discrimination is the direct opposite of being loving and therefore stops people from becoming the Jesuit ideal of being men and women for others. Poems, the literary arts and motion pictures can offer an escape for those affected by this type of bigotry. Unfortunately, there has been other examples of racially prejudiced poems, literary arts, and motion pictures. For example the 1915 film Birth of a Nation was a groundbreaking film that led to the emergence of the Second Ku Klux Klan. The movie dealt with the Civil War and the Reconstruction era of the United States. The reason why this film is so controversial is that it portrayed African Americans as not smart and also sexual violent, while portraying the KKK as a just and chivalrous force for good. This film influenced the Harlem Renaissance Poets because it illustrated how hate and discrimination existed against African Americans. That is why racial discrimination is one of the most important problems. Racial discrimination and stereotypes are important to consider in modern times because they are the opposite of love, which is hate. The poetry I chose that dealt with how African Americans not only survive with racism but learned how to defeat it.

All questions answered and good job on giving examples. I agree with you that Irene just want a normal life as every other human beings, but because of her black background it just very challenging. I wonder if Clare didn't really like her husband "John" why she married him the first place. She could have just dumped him and start a new life instead on intruding into Irene and Brain's life. What I like about this novel, is that in the end, the author didn't reveal who actually it was that pushed Clare or if she fall on herself. It just very mysterious and also sad simultaneously. This makes readers have to think deeply to back to the readings and the evidences that supports her death which I think it was a great way to make readers more

By crossing the color line, Clare is the character who tries to “pass” in the white American community as a white man’s wife and marry for wealth. Thus, in Irene’s mind, Clare is a deserter of African Americans because of her life of passing. In Clare’s idea of life, there is nothing can beyond her own immediate desire. Therefore, in Part two chapters 2, Larsen recounts, “ Between them the barrier was just as high, just as board, and just as firm as if in Clare did not run that strain of black blood”. Unlike Clare, Irene stays loyal to her original identity as an African American women by marring into her community. Irene can be a representation of the African American community and she is proud of her racial heritage. In Part 2 chapters 3, Larsen describes, “ Irene was glad that he was being nice to Clare, and glad that Clare was having the opportunity to discover that some coloured men were superior to some white men”. Irene’s loyalties are to her culture and her race; she only “passes” out of necessity and never openly lies about being black. Her lifestyle is that of someone who truly believes in her African American

Scholars have theorised that Passing as a novel is not majorly about race and race is just used as a literary device to move the plot along. They have identified a homoerotic subtext between Irene and Clare, centred on the erotic undertones in Irene's descriptions of Clare and appreciation of her beauty. The language that Larsen uses to describe Clare when Irene comes downstairs to find her waiting suggests a suppressed attraction especially noted when Irene acknowledges a shared appreciation with her husband. The concept of ‘passing’ under another identity takes place on numerous levels within the novel and not just in the aspect of race. Irene and Brian’s marriage is one of convenience as they sleep in separate bedrooms and just co-parent.