Passing

Part I of Essay
In Nella Larsen’s , Irene Redfield and Clare Kendry show us a great deal about race and sexuality in the 1920s. Both are extremely light-skinned women of African-American descent. However similar they appear to be, their views on race, a very controversial issue at the ti ....

Part II of Essay
.... based on social status. Irene is jealous of Clare’s ability to succeed, even though she may not know it. The root of Irene’s jealousy of Clare is in these three ideas of race, sexuality, and class, making Irene despise someone who she obviously also loves. Irene’s desire for Clare is revealed throughout the book, especially in the beginning when she is at the Drayton Hotel. She sees “an attractive-looking young woman…with those dark, almost black, eyes and that wide mouth like a scarlet flower against the ivory of her skin.” (p. 14) She is ....