Passing

Passing

by Nella Larsen

Went on a road trip up north listening to Passing by Nella Larsen, which is a quick listen – only four hours.  This is a powerful novel written at a time of significant racial discord in our country.   The main character is Irene Redfield, a mixed-race woman who lives in Harlem.  The book is broken into three parts. The first is the "Encounter," opening with Irene receiving a letter from a former friend, Clare Kendry, whom she met again at a restaurant while visiting her hometown of Chicago. The two women had grown apart when Clare moved away after her father died.  During their meeting, Irene learns that Clare "passes" for white and is married to a white man, who is unaware of her being half-black.  The meeting leaves Irene shaken and wanting to avoid Clare, but with further outreach from Clare, they have other meetings. In the next encounter, Clare’s white husband, John Bellew, shows up. Irene and two of her other friends are shaken by John’s racist remarks but do not let him know that Clare is also black.  The women want nothing to do with Clare, fearing for themselves and Clare. Clare later sends an apology letter to Irene, which she destroys.  In the second part, "Re-encounter," Irene receives another letter from Clare, which she at first ignores, but Clare then shows up at her home.  Clare gets involved in Irene’s committee work at the "Negro Welfare League" (NWL) by showing up at an event, which leads to a rebuilding of the friendship.  In part three, we find Irene’s relationship with her husband is strained and she is suspicious that her husband and Clare are having an affair, which leads Irene to not warn Clare that her husband (Jack) has become aware of her race.  In the final scene, there is an encounter where Jack shows up at a party among Irene’s friends and confronts Clare, calling her a "damned dirty nigger!" At that moment, Clare, who is near an open window falls out from the top floor of the building where she is pronounced dead. It is unclear if she has fallen, jumps, or is pushed by either Irene or Jack. Clare’s anguish ends the book.  Wow, what a story!  Irene’s dire fear is real and leads her to question her own decision making.  Compelling read which captures the hidden experience of light-skinned black people in the 1940s.