ses “into the white world, and becomes [a wife] of a white man in order to have greater economic and professional opportunities” (Singh 58). Clare’s reasons for entering the white community are based solely on her desire for economic security, which John Bellows can provide. Although Irene can pass if she desires, her marriage to a respectable African American doctor already secures her status in the middle-class black society. She does not have to hide her true identity because she has already achieved the same kind of social status that Clare so desperately desires. Ironically, however, Irene does occasionally pass seemingly out of convenience. Her feelings of being discovered in the Drayton passing as a white woman illustrate her conflict:Irene felt, in turn, anger, scorn, and fear slide over her. It wasn’t that she was ashamed of being a Negro, or even of having it declared. It was the idea of being ejected from any place, even in the polite and tactful way in which the Drayton would probably do it, that disturbed her. (Larsen 150)It is difficult to believe that Irene’s only concern about being identified as an African American at the Drayton is that she will be embarrassed if she is asked to leave. She casually passes out of convenience but at the same time loses some shred of her dignity because she denies her identity, just as Clare does. Irene’s passing is also hypocritical because she disapproves of it for Clare, but considers it acceptable for herself. Her “protestations about race are disproportionate to the situation” because even she is willing to pass if the situation warrants (McDowell xxviii). Although Irene does not completely pass into the white community as Clare does, her willingness to deceive in order to gain social status, like tea at the ritzy Drayton, illustrates another motivation behind passing.The theme of passing is significant in Larsen’s nove...
