A History of Passing
Clark Barwick writes in his article, “A History of Passing,” that “each successive generation [of readers] has actively and even literally projected its own needs, desires, and anxieties” on the novel, such that the “record of publication and reading provides us with critical insight not just into the shifting interpretation of an important novel but also into how America has understood—and continues to understand, and will continue to understand—race, gender, sexuality, and ultimately, those who do not easily fit into its prescriptive categories” (24–25).
Write a 3- to 5-page paper about the changing reception of Passing based on your reading of Barwick’s article.
Your essay should include a brief summary (two paragraphs or less) of Barwick’s article but should devote most of its length to a discussion of two main questions:
Is any one moment of the novel’s reputation more valid or authentic than the others?
Is there a past moment of the novel’s reputation that today’s readers (including yourself) would be most likely to connect with?
When answering each question, make sure to develop your reasoning clearly and with explicit reference to both Larsen’s text and Barwick’s article.
