At the peak, or height of the Harlem Renaissance, Nella Larsen published her novel Passing (1929). The context in which Larsen lived in at the time meant that the conditions of racial related issues were still in the process of rectification and improvement as African Americans were progressively gaining rights, autonomy and a voice in America as society was slowly and steadily deviating from prejudice and discriminative practices. However, it is important to note that racial tension, exclusion and equality still remained to be a struggle for African Americans at the time.
With that, being an African American woman at such a controversial period of time meant additional complications and difficulties due to the duality of being both a woman and a black individual in America. The female characters such as Irene in Passing are prime examples of an African American woman facing an identity crisis and power struggles as she seems to become increasingly haunted and paranoid as a result of their racial backgrounds in specific instances and situations.
A significant moment to consider in the novel is when Irene, Gertrude and Clare discuss family planning in relation to race.
“’No’, she went on, ‘ no more for me either. Not even a girl. It’s awful the way it skips generations and then pops out. Why, he actually said he wouldn’t care what color it turned out, if I would only stop worrying about it. But, of course, nobody wants a dark child’. Her voice was earnest and she took for granted that her audience was in entire agreement with her” (p. 37)
This excerpt is thought provoking as it seems as if the potential risk of having a dark-skinned baby deters Gertrude from deciding on whether or not she should expand her family. In this case, the matter of race plays an important role in describing, building and influencing who these women are at such a time and place where they would be ill-treated and disadvantaged just because of their natural skin tone. The fact that Gertrude had to extensively ponder on if having a baby is the “right” decision is problematic as it highlights and emphasizes the role that race could play on personal matters and maybe even how it would affect the life of the child itself, should Gertrude would proceed to have more children.
This becomes a question of agency and self-government as it is evident that the idea of racial discrimination was still engrained and applied in the community that one feels as the safe option would be to spare themselves and a child of a life of pain, suffering and prejudice. This passage reminded me of Toni Morrison’s novel Beloved (1987) in the sense that Sethe, opted to kill her children in order to save them from experiencing the degradation, humiliation, occupation and intolerance that she faced.
Thanks for your post, Tarab. That final connection to Morrison’s Beloved is very suggestive and worth more consideration.
I like how this post zooms in on a specific passage from the novel. It’s a significant passage. The analysis highlights how racism in society impacts Gertrude’s decision. There’s more there to consider – focus in on the passage more. What does “it’s awful the way it skips generations and then pops out” refer to? This is in part a condemnation of society’s racism, but there’s also much to be said for how Gertrude has internalized white supremacy as well (think abut that language – “pops out” and the following, “but of course”).
Is Gertrude acting out of a concern to protect her future children? Or out of a concern for herself? (Or, possibly both?) How might she be performing the racist attitudes of white society here?