What question did this study set out to answer?

This analysis examines how race is constructed through contexts in Nella Larsen's Passing.

synapse

⌘+K

synapse

⌘+K

January 26, 2026

Race in Context: Ordinary Language and Nella Larsen’s Passing

Key Points

This analysis examines how race is constructed through contexts in Nella Larsen's Passing.
Literary analysis of Nella Larsen's Passing
Examination of racial ambiguity and identity
Application of ordinary language philosophy concepts
Argues against postracialist theories that suggest ambiguity voids race meaning
Shows that race is contextually constructed and interpreted
Highlights the relevance of ordinary language philosophy in antiracism debates

Abstract

Abstract: In Nella Larsen’s Passing , light-skinned biracial characters use racial ambiguity to “pass” as white in 1920s America. When race concepts are ambiguous, do they lose their meaning? Some literary critics say yes, taking a postracialist position influenced by poststructuralist theories of language. I argue instead that Passing shows how race is constructed by contexts and interpreted as rules are interpreted—replete with mistakes, uncertainty, and borderline cases. This racial contextualism resonates with the ordinary language philosophy (OLP) of J. L. Austin and Ludwig Wittgenstein, suggesting the value of OLP for antiracism and the importance of debates about race in OLP.

Mark Helpful

Bookmark

Relay