Passing: Analysis of Major Characters
"Passing" delves into the complexities of race, identity, and societal expectations through its major characters, primarily focusing on Irene (’Rene) Westover Redfield and Clare Kendry. Irene, an affluent member of Harlem's black elite, grapples with her privilege and a deep-seated unease regarding her friend Clare, who chooses to "pass" for white. Clare's life is marked by both reckless courage and tragic loss as she navigates her relationship with her racist husband, John Bellew, and her yearning to reconnect with her racial heritage. The tension between Irene and Clare is palpable, rooted in jealousy and fear, which complicates their bond despite shared racial ties. Brian Redfield, Irene’s husband, embodies dissatisfaction and sexual intrigue, further complicating the dynamics of race, class, and desire within their marriage. Supporting characters, like Gertrude Martin and the servants Zulena and Liza, enrich the narrative by illustrating various experiences of racial identity. The story culminates in a suspenseful conclusion that leaves readers questioning the circumstances surrounding Clare's fate. Overall, "Passing" offers a profound exploration of the implications of racial identity and the often fraught nature of personal relationships in the context of race and class.
Passing: Analysis of Major Characters
Author: Nella Larsen
First published: 1929
Genre: Novel
Locale: New York City
Plot: Social realism
Time: The 1920's
Irene ('Rene) Westover Redfield, the protagonist, in her early thirties, foremost among a cast of unlikable characters. She is a complacent member of the moneyed black elite of Harlem with a craving for safety. Olive-skinned, she “passes” for white when she wants a taxi, a theater ticket, or entrée into a classy café, but her erstwhile friend Clare Kendry's wholesale betrayal of her race provokes her scorn and a sense of un-ease. Jealous and frightened of Clare's attraction for her husband, she is nevertheless bound to her by the ties of race. As the novel's center of consciousness, from the first she focuses the reader's own sense of unease, and at the novel's close the reader wonders whether 'Rene has deliberately pushed Clare to her death from a sixth-floor window.
Clare Kendry, also referred to as Mrs. John Bellew, 'Rene's Chicago childhood friend. Blonde, pale-skinned Clare grew up as the orphaned poor relation of whites whom it suited to obscure her racial origins. She is now married to a wealthy black-hating bigot (he nicknames her “Nig” because her skin is darkening with age). There is reckless daring in her life of deception and something tragic in the loss of selfhood that drives her to reestablish dangerous contact with the blackness whose burden 'Rene has been privileged to bear so lightly. An elusive and flowerlike beauty with a caressing smile and concealing black eyes, she is a creature apart, a pariah, yet capable of heights and depths of feeling that 'Rene has never known. When she is finally confronted by Bellew, the reader is left to wonder whether she committed suicide or was pushed to her death.
Brian Redfield, 'Rene's husband, a successful doctor. Urbane and handsome, Redfield is openly dissatisfied with his small world, covertly bored by his wife, and sexually fascinated by Clare Kendry. His marriage to 'Rene contrasts unfavorably with Bellew's to Clare—one more twist in the novel's complex web of race, sex, and class.
John (Jack) Bellew, an honest and jolly racist of the old school who ignorantly adores his wife.
Gertrude Martin, one of Clare's few “friends,” a coarse and overweight matron, another black “goat” who can pass for a “sheep,” but one whose white husband knows the truth.
Zulena and Liza, 'Rene's mahogany and ebony-colored servants.
Hugh Wentworth, 'Rene's white high-society friend who “goes in” for her pet charity, the Negro Welfare League. He and 'Rene discuss contemporary themes of race and culture, especially the phenomenon of “passing.”