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Kevin's Reviews > Passing
Passing
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Kevin's review
bookshelves: classics, feminist-studies, fiction, race-social-justice, reviewed, my-favorite-books, black-lives
Feb 09, 2021
bookshelves: classics, feminist-studies, fiction, race-social-justice, reviewed, my-favorite-books, black-lives
Passing: (as it pertains to racial identity) is when a person classified as a member of one racial group is accepted, passes, as a member of another. Historically, the term has been used primarily in the U.S. to describe a person of color who assimilated into the white majority in order to escape the segregated social conventions of racism. -Wikipedia
Nell Larsen gifts us with two extraordinary characters - Irene and Clare. Both women, black by birth, are light skinned enough to “pass” as white. Whereas Irene passes occasionally, often accidentally, Clare has made passing her life’s work. Published in 1929, the interactions between Irene and Clare illuminate the trauma of systemic bigotry and racial discrimination.
Larsen’s mastery of projecting the ethos of her era had me all tied up in knots. This is one of those novels that burrows up in your brain and plays hand ball against the backside of your eyes. 90+ years have passed since Nell Larsen first put pen to paper, we should be a lot further down this road - and yet, here we still are. Only now it’s the racists that are passing. Passing for patriots. Passing for Christians.
Nell Larsen gifts us with two extraordinary characters - Irene and Clare. Both women, black by birth, are light skinned enough to “pass” as white. Whereas Irene passes occasionally, often accidentally, Clare has made passing her life’s work. Published in 1929, the interactions between Irene and Clare illuminate the trauma of systemic bigotry and racial discrimination.
Larsen’s mastery of projecting the ethos of her era had me all tied up in knots. This is one of those novels that burrows up in your brain and plays hand ball against the backside of your eyes. 90+ years have passed since Nell Larsen first put pen to paper, we should be a lot further down this road - and yet, here we still are. Only now it’s the racists that are passing. Passing for patriots. Passing for Christians.
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Reading Progress
February 6, 2021
–
Started Reading
February 6, 2021
– Shelved
February 6, 2021
– Shelved as:
to-read
February 6, 2021
– Shelved as:
feminist-studies
February 6, 2021
– Shelved as:
classics
February 6, 2021
– Shelved as:
race-social-justice
February 6, 2021
– Shelved as:
fiction
February 9, 2021
– Shelved as:
reviewed
February 9, 2021
–
Finished Reading
August 31, 2021
– Shelved as:
my-favorite-books
October 5, 2022
– Shelved as:
black-lives
Comments Showing 1-23 of 23 (23 new)
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Jenna
(last edited Feb 09, 2021 05:40AM)
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Feb 09, 2021 05:07AM
Terrific review, Kevin and I love your last 3 sentences. Racism somehow doesn't seem very "Christ-like", does it? Of course, since at least the times of slavery, people have used their religion to justify their racism, going by Paul's words instead of Jesus'.... as the racists and bigots still do.
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Nice review!! Passing in this book is about racial identity, but to limit the definition to racial identity is too narrow. There are all kinds of "passing", Jews as gentiles, gay as cis-gendered, male as female, Korean as Japanese etc etc ect. I think of passing as perpetuating the delusion. Allow others to indulge in a fantasy for one's own benefit, safety, security etc. And yes to your point of racists 
Thank you Jenna. Wasn’t it Napoleon that said religion is useful because it keeps the poor from murdering the rich? Lol
Monica, thank you! I could not agree more. Your comments sound very much like what I said in my review of “The Underground Girls of Kabul”
“It should come as no surprise that, in a society where women are second-tier citizens, some little girls are raised and presented as little boys ...Batshit crazy? Yes. But is it any more crazy than gay U.S. Marines who are forced to present as heterosexual in order to serve their country? What about South Africans who bleached their skin in order to present as 'white' under Apartheid? Or, and I'm paraphrasing Jenny Nordberg here, what about Jews who presented as Protestants in order to survive the holocaust? Deceptional presentation is a coping mechanism in any society where one group, one ethnicity, one gender is unjustly favored over another.” - from my review Jenny Nordberg’s book
Excellent review of an endlessly fascinating classic, Kevin. For a contemporary Black female author’s take on this topic, I’d highly recommend The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett. Explores a lot of what Monica was saying in her comment.
I've seen reviews of this book occasionally on GR, but your final point is the one that really makes it pertinent.
Thank you James! And thank you for the recommendation, I will look it up.
Thank you Cecily. It often takes me several drafts before my words adequately express my emotional response to a book. For whatever reason, nonfiction comes so much easier for me. There is so much about good fiction that seems personal and interpretive.
As a reader and reviewer, I enjoy the "personal and interpretive" aspect of reviews of fiction, but I realise not everyone does. As for needing several drafts to convey one's emotional response, I can certainly relate to that, though there's a huge range: for some books it's instinctive, rather than cerebral, whereas for others, I really have to think and revisit - and hope!
Really nicely said, Kevin. I'll add this to my LONG to read list. Thanks!
Thanks Jeanne! My TBR mountain is rather humongous as well
Kevin wrote: "Thanks Jeanne! My TBR mountain is rather humongous as well"I considered a New Year's resolution relative to decreasing the size of mine, but decided against resolutions about impossible goals. Be well!
...and some Christians are giving racist a pass. Good review, Kevin.
excellent point David, and thank you!
Love your review, Kevin. I’ve never read this book but plan to do so now. Like James, I would also recommend The Vanishing Half - an excellent read. 👍😊
Thank you Lyn! This is one of those novels that would probably have slipped by me, completely unnoticed, if not for my GR friends.
A powerful last paragraph, Kevin! As I read your review, I was reminded of the news that Republican, Adam Kinzinger has been denounced by relatives in his family for voting his conscience to impeach Trump for inciting the riot. They accused him of joining "the devil's army" and a disappointment “to us and to God.”
This story sounds fascinating. I haven't read this, but I do have The Vanishing Half queued up to read next.
Thank you Carol. How to wrap up a comment (I hesitate to call them “reviews”) is a mental hurdle I frequently fail to negotiate. Lol
Kevin wrote: "Thank you Carol. How to wrap up a comment (I hesitate to call them “reviews”) is a mental hurdle I frequently fail to negotiate. Lol"I never see you struggle with an emotional response to your review; and, I admire your "race-social-justice" literary search, Kevin.
High praise indeed coming from someone as gracious and open minded as yourself Carol, thank you.
Your last two sentences: so true!
Kristina, I feel like it’s sadly obvious to everyone but themselves. It is mind boggling that they are so unaware of their own hypocrisy.
