Passing

Use these links to supplement and complement students’ reading of the work and to increase their overall enjoyment of literature. Challenge them to discern parallel themes, engage through visual and aural stimuli, and delve deeper into the thematic possibilities presented by the title.

Recommended Texts for Pairing

 "Harlem" by Langston Hughes

• An iconic poem of the Harlem Renaissance, “Harlem” captures a lyricism that adapts the blues and jazz techniques of the Harlem Renaissance. “Harlem” explores the themes of Black life in Harlem in the late 1920s.
• connects to theme of Allegiance
• “Harlem” on SuperSummary

White Lies by A.J. Baime

• A.J. Baime’s biography of Walter White tells the story of a Black man who used his ability to pass as a white man to investigate lynching in the early 20th century. Walter White’s work with the NAACP to lobby Congress against lynching, his role as cultural salon enthusiast of the Harlem Renaissance, and his erasure from popular history is important to understanding The New Negro Movement.
• connects to themes of Passing and Allegiance

The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

• Bennett’s 2020 novel about two sisters, one who passes for white and one who chooses to stay true to her Black identity, parallels Passing.