Racial passing refers to the sometimes-temporary, sometimes-ongoing act of secretly crossing the color line, usually for material or social advantage or to escape the constraints of racism. Because it requires a body that is phenotypically ambiguous (or difficult to read), this practice has always been statistically rare. Nevertheless, during the era of legal segregation—between the late nineteenth-century and the mid-twentieth-century—the subject of racial passing became a topic of widespread intrigue and anxiety for white and black Americans alike. Novels, autobiographical statements, court cases, and films about the experience and scandal of passing captivated the popular imagination.

In this class, we will explore the social and literary history of racial passing. Our source material will consist primarily of novels, films, a memoir, and newspaper coverage from the early to mid-twentieth century, though toward the end of the semester, we will also consider the surprising twenty-first century re-emergence of passing as a literary and filmic subject. Together, we will ask: Under what kinds of historical circumstances and social pressures have people decided to pass? How is passing fundamentally similar to and/or different from other forms of social mobility and disguise? What does the possibility of passing tell us about the social meanings and logics of race? How and to what effects does the literature of passing thematize loss, freedom, nature, and morality?

By way of the fascinating history and vast literature on racial passing, students will gain a deeper understanding of how ideas about blackness and whiteness have been codified, challenged, and revised over the course of American social history. Students will also learn about the internal properties and social uses of literature. And we will practice and refine various technical skills, such as summarizing complex plots and arguments, developing generative questions, using and assessing evidence, and reflecting on methods of reasoning. 

Assigned texts may include James Weldon Johnson’s Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man, Nella Larsen’s Passing and Rebecca Hall’s filmic adaptation of it, Fanny Hurst’s Imitation of Life and one or both of  its filmic adaptations, John Howard Griffin’s Black Like Me, Philip Roth’s The Human Stain, and Brit Bennet’s The Vanishing Half.

This course satisfies the following CURRENT English major/minor requirements: American Literature, Identity/Difference

This course satisfies the following NEW English major/minor requirements: Foundations & Methods (300/400-level), Regions (Americas, UK, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland), Time (Contemporary/Modern)

Course Requirements:

Students should expect to read approximately 200 pages per week. Class meetings will include both lecture and discussion. Course requirements are likely to include attendance and active participation; a few short, skill-based homework assignments (2-3 pages); a midterm exam; and a final essay (6-8 pages).

Intended Audience:

No prior coursework or content knowledge is required. All students who are interested in the subject matter and prepared to immerse themselves in a semester of serious reading and writing are warmly welcome.