Black or white. AN ANALYSIS OF THE DETRIMENT OF "PASSING" IN JAMES WELDON JOHNSON'S NOVEL, AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF AN EX-COLORED MAN

AN ANALYSIS OF THE DETRIMENT OF "PASSING" IN JAMES WELDON JOHNSON'S NOVEL, AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF AN EX-COLORED MAN Is it rational for a black man to attempt to "pass" himself off as a white person? "Passing" is defined as a detrimental intermediary preventing the narrator's ability to find his identity. The narrator is tossed between living as a black or white man. What causes people to struggle between two races? There are many detrimental elements that …

…thus realizing that his identity is missing, and his children will never know their true Williams 6 identity. By selling his birthright he has practically sold his soul. He has sold out to all the black men that have fought for freedom and equality. "Passing" is definitely a detrimental intermediary preventing the narrator's ability to find his identity. It is not rational or productive for a black man to "pass" himself off as a white person.