Review of Passing Literature & Language Essay Paper

Passing: Literature Review Name:
Instructor’s Name:
Course:
Date:
Review of Passing
The racial discrimination in the United States is not a new topic and has been under discussion for decades. The historical figures like Dr. Luther King dedicated their entire life to earn the basic human rights for the African Americans (Nisita). The author of “passing” Nella Larsen is a historical figure in her own way. The author was the first African-Women to receive a fellowship in Guggenheim and while her work is small yet considered one of the most powerful piece of literature in American history (Nisita). The novel consists of the experiences of two women and their life experiences. One is Irene Redfield which belongs to the elite, is well accomplished, reasonably wealthy but living in a cultural enclave. The other is Clare Kendry which is just shunned by her own community and she is “passing” for white like her peers (Nisita). Her husband, however, her husband doesn’t know about her struggle of becoming white and often teases her with jokes on her “tan” skin. The main hypothesis of this novel is the struggle in women to become “white” or in other words beautiful and conflict between their public and private identities (Nisita). One of the most interesting facts is the standards of beauty discussed by the author in this novel are same back then and today.
“Whiteness” is usually considered as the only standard of beauty and unfortunately this fact hasn’t changed and is used or exploited by the multi-billion dollar cosmetic industry (Nisita). The Clare Kendry struggle to maintain the lightest skin possible and enhance certain features which reassure the viewers to suggest a European Background. Today, whether due to political correctness or actual progress; this trend is less blatant. In today’s society, no one can get away without saying that a black woman cannot qualify as a beautiful one. Despite the socio-political developments there still exists strive among women to become beautiful or simply become white to be admired by their male counterparts (Nisita). However, recently some black or light skinned celebrities have been appearing on the magazine covers like Beyonce or Washington as Black Idols. But these women are still labeled as &ld...