Passing
Notes
Question: The end of the novel is ambiguous, leaving open
the possibility that Irene has pushed Clare out the window or that Clare has
killed herself. Which possibility do you
defend? Why?
I. Student Impressions
-- “Very Interesting”
-- “Did not like it”
-- “Too descriptive in the beginning” (the
-- “The grammar was not very well done” – but it
is a dialect
-- “It was like Spinning Into Butter—it was a bit too much
for me (the first chapter was bunk)”
-- The set up came on pages 147 and 148 (back in
-- “I absolutely hate this book. It was a literal chore to go from page to
page. It promotes racism.”
II. Important page numbers
-- 146
-- 147-148
-- 177 “longing” hmmm…
III. Themes
1. Passing Black for white / white for black
2. An affair?
3. The 1920s (the roaring 20s) before prohibition.
IV. The Women (The
ladies are different from one another in what ways?)
1. Clare
A. Clare and Brian??? Why do you think this?
-- Clare was outgoing
-- Clare was beautiful
-- She was good at convincing people to see things her way
-- She gets what she wants
-- Irene was insecure (she used to be able to look at her husband and change
his mood. Not so much lately)
-- Brian invites Clare to a party and Irene gets upset
-- Irene seems jealous of Clare (maybe not an affair)
-- Irene saw Clare with a man other than her husband
-- Brian offered to drive Clare home yet he dropped his wife at the house first
B. Clare and John Bellew
-- daughter Margery
2. Irene and Brian Redfield
-- sons Brian Junior and Theodore
-- Irene has trouble saying no.