Passing

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Scaffolded/Short-Answer Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the below bulleted outlines. Cite details from the novel over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. Compare the husbands in the novel, including Brian and John.

• How are Brian and John similar with regard to the ways they treat their wives and women in general, despite their different ethnicities and points-of-view? (topic sentence)
• Find examples in the story to support your thoughts. Discuss how Brian’s and John’s treatment of their wives compares to the ways they treat women in general. How do Brian and John’s different ethnicities and points-of-view impact their treatment of women?
• Conclude with a sentence that identifies the role husbands play in the novel Passing.

2. Though Clare Kendry has a rich husband, she was not always wealthy.

• What role does John Bellew play in changing Clare’s socio-economic status? (topic sentence)
• What is Clare’s attraction to John? Why risk the possibility of being caught passing as white by a man full of venomous racism? Find 2-3 text details to support your discussion.
• Conclude with a sentence that determines why Clare chose to marry John.

3. Irene and Hugh Wentworth discuss the concept of “slumming it” in Harlem, where white people socialized with Black community members for various reasons.

• What is the strongest reason for white people socializing with Black people in Harlem, according to their discussion? (topic sentence)
• How did Hugh view socializing in Harlem? How did Clare?
• How do these views of socializing with Black people in Harlem mirror racist attitudes and prejudices? Include 3-4 text details in your discussion.
• In your concluding sentences, explain the characterization of Harlem as a safe haven for Black people and a playground for white people.

Full Essay Assignments

Student Prompt: Write a structured and well-developed essay. Include a thesis statement, at least three main points supported by text details, and a conclusion.

1. What do the complex characterizations of Clare and Irene’s friendship reveal about female dynamics in a male-dominated world? How might this novel be different if men were the central characters? Include in your analysis a discussion of the intersectional identity of Irene and Clare’s race and socio-economic class.

2. Ultimately, is “passing” worth the risk? Analyze the contrasts between Clare and Irene’s lives and consider how passing or not passing influences their psyches. Include text details to support your rationale and analysis.

3. Though Irene and Brian live a fulfilling life with career, freedom, and family, they still live in the United States during a turbulent time of Jim Crow laws, widespread lynching, dry laws, segregation, and world wars. How does Irene’s construction of family and society in 1920s Harlem depict these contextual issues?