Later Analysis & Criticism (AO5)

Question 1

What is the ‘tragic mulatto’ stereotype in American literature?

Answer 1

Definition:

A stereotype where a mixed-race person (of white and black parentage) is portrayed as tragic due to their inability to fit into either the white or black world.

Source: Pilgrim, David, ‘The Tragic Mulatto Myth’, Jim Crow: Museum of Racist Memorabilia, Ferris State University.

Question 2

What is Jonathan Little’s main argument about Passing in his article Nella Larsen’s Passing: Irony and the Critics?

Answer 2

Key Points:

Critics often miss the irony in Larsen’s work, particularly in the endings.

Larsen subverts the traditional “passing-for-white” trope by replacing joy with “ironic tragedy.”

Irene is an unreliable narrator, and her jealousy and middle-class bias shape the reader’s perception of Clare.

Quotes (1992)

“Larsen, obviously aware of the traditions before her, chooses not to depict such serene returns for her characters.”

“Irene’s problematic influence has been underestimated as a power in shaping readers’ interpretations of Clare.”

“At the narrative’s end, Irene is becoming** increasingly fragmented and alienated from herself.”**

Source:
Little, Jonathan, African American Review Vol. 26, No. 1 (Spring 1992).

Source: Little, Jonathan, African American Review Vol. 26, No. 1 (Spring 1992).

Question 3

What does Richard Bernstein highlight in his review of Passing in The New York Times (15th January 2001)?

Answer 3

Key Points:

The novel is deeply American and psychologically convincing.

Irene and Clare’s entwined desires and fears drive the narrative.

Irene’s strength lies in her secure identity, while Clare’s lies in her defiance.
Quotes:

“It is a tragic story rooted in inescapable facts of American life: that whiteness conferred an almost universal unearned advantage.”

“Essentially, ‘Passing’ is about two women whose choices were opposite and whose fates were strangely intertwined.”

“Irene never accepts Clare’s gestures of defiance as anything but foolishly risky.”

Source: Bernstein, Richard, The New York Times, 15th January 2001.

Question 4

What does Brooke Kroeger argue about Passing in her article Hiding in Plain Sight in the Los Angeles Times?

Answer 4

Key Points:

Passing involves hiding one’s origins to sustain an unobtainable life.

Irene’s life is based on dishonesty, even beyond racial passing.

Passing stories often critique unjust systems that force individuals to deceive.

Quotes (2002)

“We might ask if Irene is also passing when she postures as the ‘New Negro’ paragon.”

“Passers hide their origins. They need the complicity, the safe distance or death of those who knew them.” (LINK TO GATSBY)

“The typical moral of the story is that passing, if not bad, is at least a really bad idea.”

Source: Kroeger, Brooke, Los Angeles Times.

Question 5

What does Claudia Tate argue about Passing in her analysis?

Answer 5

Key Points:

-Tate focuses on the psychological complexity of Irene and Clare’s relationship.
-She explores the tension between Irene’s desire for security and Clare’s desire for freedom.
-Tate highlights the novel’s exploration of repressed desires and societal constraints.

Quotes:
“Irene’s obsession with Clare reveals her own repressed desires and fears.”

“Clare’s passing is not just a racial act but a rebellion against societal norms.”

“The novel’s ending forces readers to confront the consequences of repressed emotions and societal expectations.”

Source: Tate, Claudia, Domestic Allegories of Political Desire: The Black Heroine’s Text at the Turn of the Century.