This blog post is from Irene’s point of view, overthinking how the people around her view her actions and the person she is. Throughout part 1 and part 2 of passing, we see Irene’s personality come out through different situations in the story, which makes us construct a negative or positive opinion on her just like Clare and Brian. Moreover, that creates an internal struggle in Irene’s mind in terms of how her actions might cause her to be misjudged or misinterpreted.
I wonder what Clare thinks of me? I hope she thinks I’m pretty. I really do miss her, and I want to connect with her again, but I can’t. How could I accept someone who is as absurd and lying as she is? She denies her race and fakes her identity. Unbelievable I could never!
Omg stop Irene you are being judgmental. Wait Am I? WOAH CLARE PROBABLY THINKS IM A JUDGMENTAL JERK! But I’m not though and I didn’t mean to. I’m just pointing out her ridiculous and preposterous actions and her stupidity for marrying a white man. Wait she does think I’m judgmental and maybe even a know it all! She most definitely thinks I’m this inconsiderate person who has no clue about what she is going through
I also found it really annoying how Brian was dancing with her and overall how everyone at the dance seemed to love her and enjoy her company. Wait a sec… She doesn’t think I’m jealous, does she? I mean I was eyeing her the whole time but acting as natural as possible. you know because I’m not actually jealous of her. Right?
OR brian! I don’t know what’s wrong with him. All I want is the best for our family and there he goes with the “ I hate sick people” statement. Jeez, I get it! I think he forgets he is a doctor sometimes and must sacrifice certain things for the kids and I. yup, to him I’m a control freak with a rude attitude that he doesn’t want to have any romantic connection with. He probably even thinks Clare is prettier and more fun. Is it her gorgeous smile or her bright presence?
Ugh, Irene snap out of it you’re overthinking.
But wait,
What if they both internally dislike me and are planning to ruin my life and prosper theirs through getting together and going on a honeymoon to Santorini where they will get to feel the golden sun and enjoy some delicious morning breakfast by the ocean.
Oh god.
Nice post, Leen! I haven’t thought of Irene’s overthinking so much in the novel, but I can see it now that you point it out. I love the direct and communicative every-day tone of the piece, I initially thought Irene was either talking directly to someone or texting. I think that your post does a good job in unraveling all the thoughts she withholds from us- it feels that this post could be what she would say about all her fears and anxieties regarding Clare and Brian if she was talking to us instead of narrating the story.
I love this post Leen! I too have never thought of Irene’s thoughts that way, so this post really opened my eyes; I will definitely make note of it and start looking at her character differently. I really love the way you expressed Irene’s conflicted thoughts towards and about Clare; the fact that Irene realized that she was judging Clare and instantly thought back was done really well. I also really love the way Irene’s thoughts kept oscillating between one thought and another, slowly escalating and quickly coming back down; the way you expressed her thoughts (the pace, tone, and word choice) did a great job at capturing the true essence and meaning of overthinking, specifically, Irene’s overthinking. Great job!
I love this, it literally displays all the different emotions Irene is going through in the book. Irene is in a love and hate relationship with herself, Clare, and Brian, and this creative piece reflects those emotions well. It’s crazy how overthinking can cause someone to have such internal conflicts towards different people in their lives.
I feel like Irene’s confusion and internal conflict is due to her awareness that she is losing control to what is happening in her life. Some of those driving forces for her internal conflicts are, but not limited to: Brian drifting from her, Clare comes back into her life, and the whole race (intersectionality) and identity conflict.
On a side note: This kind of reminds me of myself a bit – I’m not crazy I promise – it’s just that sometimes when there are too many things happening at the same time it becomes difficult to not overthink. I understand Irene’s confusion and frustration towards the different people she has in her life, to a certain extent.
Thank you for your post, Leen. As the others noted – illustrating Irene’s inner conflicts in this way highlights her uncertainty (something that can be easy to read past when she serves as our limited POV in the novel).
You might consider sprinkling some lines or language from the novel into this post – a way to weave together both this blog/diary form and the novel itself.