Racial Formativity In The Film Passing

Racial performativity is a theme that is visually perceived in various interracial films and gives the audience a sense of how characters in the film, despite their race perform in a different matter. The films Jungle Fever and West Side Story clearly depict this notion. Racial passing is also seen in novels, a great example is the novel Passing by Nella Larsen. This novel explores the lives of two African American women, Irene and Clare who have a confusing, yet intriguing relationship. Clare acts white and passes into this dominant race, while Irene lives in confusion on how Clare can easily pass as a white female. Clare’s actions clearly depict racial performativity. In Jungle Fever, the main character Flipper who is an African American

male married to a mixed woman named Drew and biologically share a daughter together argues that even though they are mixed they act "black". The fact that these two specific characters act "black" automatically makes them "black", despite them coming from a mixed race. In the film West Side Story, Latinos do not play the Puerto Rican characters, yet they are played by white actors. The phenomenon of white actors performing the role of Puerto Ricans takes away their true racial identity. Even though both films demonstrate racial performativity as a main theme, they are centralized in different ways. It is acceptable for Drew and her daughter to act “black” however; it is offensive how the white actors performed in West Side Story.
Racial performativity by an individual who posses at least half of the racial traits in their genes is considered to be ok with society. Ed Guerrero, a film critic analyzes Jungle Fever in depth and makes various points. In the article, “Spike Lee and the Fever in the Racial Jungle” Guerrero stated: “As the rule goes, if a person has "one drop" of African blood or an African ancestor, then that person is considered black and thus loses the naturalized privileges of whiteness”. His statement meant that “one drop" of African American blood makes a person considered to be black. Even if the person is mixed with white and black, that person loses its white privileges and is thus not considered white by the community. Flipper’s wife Drew and daughter Ming are lighter in skin tone than the rest of the African Americans. If you compare the skin tone of Drew and Flipper, one can easily notice the difference in race mixtures. Flipper made a comment stating: “At least in my eyes, Drew and Ming are black. They look black, act black, so they are black!” This opinionated comment by Flipper proves that Guerrero’s statement on the “one drop” of blood significantly applies.
Spending time in different surroundings can easily impact one’s racial performativity. In the novel Passing, the setting takes place during the Harlem Renaissance where racism existed. Clare hid her true identity in order to fit in with the dominant race and not be judged by her true race. African Americans went through hardships during the times where racism was affecting minorities psychologically and emotionally. Clare found it easier to act as a white prestigious woman in order to avoid all these negative consequences that would derive from an African American woman. Even though Drew and Ming were living in a time era where racism was highly popular, they passed as African Americans due to being surrounded by individuals of the same race. Drew had numerous friends who were African American, which made her feel more comfortable acting black. If Drew were to consider herself as a white woman, she would not fit in with the rest of her clique. Tying the knot with someone of a different race can also affect how one performs or “passes” into a different race. Since Drew was married to an African American, it was easier for her to act “black”. Clare was married to wealthy white businessman. She demonstrated no difficulty in passing as a white female due to her marriage with a white male. On the other hand, her friend Irene had troubles in passing as white female even though she was also mixed. However, Irene was married to an African American male, which created an easier affection towards her heritage.
The leading Puerto Rican characters, Bernardo and Maria in West Side Story being played by white actors impact the meaning of the Puerto Rican identity. White actor George Chakiris played the role of Bernardo. Although Chakiris did have features that would resemble a Latino man such as brown skin, his unnatural skin color made him look like an imitation. This also applies to Natalie Wood who played the character of Maria. Wood’s facial complexions are very different from the typical Puerto Rican. Maria and Bernardo’s facial appearances did not look very authentic. One can easily make assumptions on anyone, regardless of their race. Since the Latino race is considered to be a minority, people tend to make assumptions due to their lack of knowledge about the specific culture. Latinos are automatically considered to be people with brown skin. Due to this common assumption, the directors of the film decided to add the brown skin features. This mistake could have been easily fixed if the characters were played by true Latino actors. The artificial accents that these actors had also took away the meaning of the Puerto Rican identity. Throughout the film, the Puerto Rican characters spoke English with a heavy yet forged accent. Accents are another main stereotype that is commonly assumed among individuals who lack knowledge in other cultures. People tend to conclude that all Latinos talk with an accent because they are less educated than natural born Americans. The main goal of the directors of any film especially an interracial film should be to give the audience a sense of how individuals of different cultures perform to give them some knowledge on different races.
Racial performativity is acceptable to a certain extent, depending on the person and their race. African American genes have shown to be very strong. A person who is half white and half black looks more “black” in physical appearance, therefore acting black is acceptable even though the individual is not one hundred percent African American. However, if a white person were to act black, individuals regardless of their race might find it a bit offensive and view it as mockery. Another great example of this type of negative imitation is how the Puerto Rican characters in West Side Story were played. This type of mockery can cause controversy in society and one can take it very offensive. This is why it is highly encouraged that people who have authority over a film to use actors of the same race or ethnicity in order to keep the film’s originality and result in the audience satisfaction.

Racial performativity is a theme that is visually perceived in various interracial films and gives the audience a sense of how characters in the film, despite their race perform in a different matter. The films Jungle Fever and West Side Story clearly depict this notion. Racial passing is also seen in novels, a great example is the novel Passing by Nella Larsen. This novel explores the lives of two African American women, Irene and Clare who have a confusing, yet intriguing relationship. Clare acts white and passes into this dominant race, while Irene lives in confusion on how Clare can easily pass as a white female. Clare’s actions clearly depict racial performativity. In Jungle Fever, the main character Flipper who is an African American male married to a mixed woman named Drew and biologically share a daughter together argues that even though they are mixed they act "black". The fact that these two specific characters act "black" automatically makes them "black", despite them coming from a mixed race. In the film West Side Story, Latinos do not play the Puerto Rican characters, yet they are played by white actors. The phenomenon of white actors performing the role of Puerto Ricans takes away their true racial identity. Even though both films demonstrate racial performativity as a main theme, they are centralized in different ways. It is acceptable for Drew and her daughter to act “black” however; it is offensive how the white actors performed in West Side Story.
Racial performativity by an individual who posses at least half of the racial traits in their genes is considered to be ok with society. Ed Guerrero, a film critic analyzes Jungle Fever in depth and makes various points. In the article, “Spike Lee and the Fever in the Racial Jungle” Guerrero stated: “As the rule goes, if a person has "one drop" of African blood or an African ancestor, then that person is considered black and thus loses the naturalized privileges of whiteness”. His statement meant that “one drop" of African American blood makes a person considered to be black. Even if the person is mixed with white and black, that person loses its white privileges and is thus not considered white by the community. Flipper’s wife Drew and daughter Ming are lighter in skin tone than the rest of the African Americans. If you compare the skin tone of Drew and Flipper, one can easily notice the difference in race mixtures. Flipper made a comment stating: “At least in my eyes, Drew and Ming are black. They look black, act black, so they are black!” This opinionated comment by Flipper proves that Guerrero’s statement on the “one drop” of blood significantly applies.
Spending time in different surroundings can easily impact one’s racial performativity. In the novel Passing, the setting takes place during the Harlem Renaissance where racism existed. Clare hid her true identity in order to fit in with the dominant race and not be judged by her true race. African Americans went through hardships during the times where racism was affecting minorities psychologically and emotionally. Clare found it easier to act as a white prestigious woman in order to avoid all these negative consequences that would derive from an African American woman. Even though Drew and Ming were living in a time era where racism was highly popular, they passed as African Americans due to being surrounded by individuals of the same race. Drew had numerous friends who were African American, which made her feel more comfortable acting black. If Drew were to consider herself as a white woman, she would not fit in with the rest of her clique. Tying the knot with someone of a different race can also affect how one performs or “passes” into a different race. Since Drew was married to an African American, it was easier for her to act “black”. Clare was married to wealthy white businessman. She demonstrated no difficulty in passing as a white female due to her marriage with a white male. On the other hand, her friend Irene had troubles in passing as white female even though she was also mixed. However, Irene was married to an African American male, which created an easier affection towards her heritage.
The leading Puerto Rican characters, Bernardo and Maria in West Side Story being played by white actors impact the meaning of the Puerto Rican identity.

White actor George Chakiris played the role of Bernardo. Although Chakiris did have features that would resemble a Latino man such as brown skin, his unnatural skin color made him look like an imitation. This also applies to Natalie Wood who played the character of Maria. Wood’s facial complexions are very different from the typical Puerto Rican. Maria and Bernardo’s facial appearances did not look very authentic. One can easily make assumptions on anyone, regardless of their race. Since the Latino race is considered to be a minority, people tend to make assumptions due to their lack of knowledge about the specific culture. Latinos are automatically considered to be people with brown skin. Due to this common assumption, the directors of the film decided to add the brown skin features. This mistake could have been easily fixed if the characters were played by true Latino actors. The artificial accents that these actors had also took away the meaning of the Puerto Rican identity. Throughout the film, the Puerto Rican characters spoke English with a heavy yet forged accent. Accents are another main stereotype that is commonly assumed among individuals who lack knowledge in other cultures. People tend to conclude that all Latinos talk with an accent because they are less educated than natural born Americans. The main goal of the

directors of any film especially an interracial film should be to give the audience a sense of how individuals of different cultures perform to give them some knowledge on different races.
Racial performativity is acceptable to a certain extent, depending on the person and their race. African American genes have shown to be very strong. A person who is half white and half black looks more “black” in physical appearance, therefore acting black is acceptable even though the individual is not one hundred percent African American. However, if a white person were to act black, individuals regardless of their race might find it a bit offensive and view it as mockery. Another great example of this type of negative imitation is how the Puerto Rican characters in West Side Story were played. This type of mockery can cause controversy in society and one can take it very offensive. This is why it is highly encouraged that people who have authority over a film to use actors of the same race or ethnicity in order to keep the film’s originality and result in the audience satisfaction.

Racial performativity is a theme that is visually perceived in various interracial films and gives the audience a sense of how characters in the film, despite their race perform in a different matter. The films Jungle Fever and West Side Story clearly depict this notion. Racial passing is also seen in novels, a great example is the novel Passing by Nella Larsen. This novel explores the lives of two African American women, Irene and Clare who have a confusing, yet intriguing relationship. Clare acts white and passes into this dominant race, while Irene lives in confusion on how Clare can easily pass as a white female. Clare’s actions clearly depict racial performativity. In Jungle Fever, the main character Flipper who is an African American male married to a mixed woman named Drew and biologically share a daughter together argues that even though they are mixed they act "black". The fact that these two specific characters act "black" automatically makes them "black", despite them coming from a mixed race. In the film West Side Story, Latinos do not play the Puerto Rican characters, yet they are played by white actors. The phenomenon of white actors performing the role of Puerto Ricans takes away their true racial identity. Even though both films demonstrate racial performativity as a main theme, they are centralized in different ways. It is acceptable for Drew and her daughter to act “black” however; it is offensive how the white actors performed in West Side Story.
Racial performativity by an individual who posses at least half of the racial traits in their genes is considered to be ok with society.

Ed Guerrero, a film critic analyzes Jungle Fever in depth and makes various points. In the article, “Spike Lee and the Fever in the Racial Jungle” Guerrero stated: “As the rule goes, if a person has "one drop" of African blood or an African ancestor, then that person is considered black and thus loses the naturalized privileges of whiteness”. His statement meant that “one drop" of African American blood makes a person considered to be black. Even if the person is mixed with white and black, that person loses its white privileges and is thus not considered white by the community. Flipper’s wife Drew and daughter Ming are lighter in skin tone than the rest of the African Americans. If you compare the skin tone of Drew and Flipper, one can easily notice the difference in race mixtures. Flipper made a comment stating: “At least in my eyes, Drew and Ming are black. They look black, act black, so they are black!” This opinionated comment by Flipper proves that Guerrero’s statement on the “one drop” of blood significantly

applies.
Spending time in different surroundings can easily impact one’s racial performativity. In the novel Passing, the setting takes place during the Harlem Renaissance where racism existed. Clare hid her true identity in order to fit in with the dominant race and not be judged by her true race. African Americans went through hardships during the times where racism was affecting minorities psychologically and emotionally. Clare found it easier to act as a white prestigious woman in order to avoid all these negative consequences that would derive from an African American woman. Even though Drew and Ming were living in a time era where racism was highly popular, they passed as African Americans due to being surrounded by individuals of the same race. Drew had numerous friends who were African American, which made her feel more comfortable acting black. If Drew were to consider herself as a white woman, she would not fit in with the rest of her clique. Tying the knot with someone of a different race can also affect how one performs or “passes” into a different race. Since Drew was married to an African American, it was easier for her to act “black”. Clare was married to wealthy white businessman. She demonstrated no difficulty in passing as a white female due to her marriage with a white male. On the other hand, her friend Irene had troubles in passing as white female even though she was also mixed. However, Irene was married to an African American male, which created an easier affection towards her heritage.
The leading Puerto Rican characters, Bernardo and Maria in West Side Story being played by white actors impact the meaning of the Puerto Rican identity. White actor George Chakiris played the role of Bernardo. Although Chakiris did have features that would resemble a Latino man such as brown skin, his unnatural skin color made him look like an imitation. This also applies to Natalie Wood who played the character of Maria. Wood’s facial complexions are very different from the typical Puerto Rican. Maria and Bernardo’s facial appearances did not look very authentic. One can easily make assumptions on anyone, regardless of their race. Since the Latino race is considered to be a minority, people tend to make assumptions due to their lack of knowledge about the specific culture. Latinos are automatically considered to be people with brown skin. Due to this common assumption, the directors of the film decided to add the brown skin features. This mistake could have been easily fixed if the characters were played by true Latino actors. The artificial accents that these actors had also took away the meaning of the Puerto Rican identity. Throughout the film, the Puerto Rican characters spoke English with a heavy yet forged accent. Accents are another main stereotype that is commonly assumed among individuals who lack knowledge in other cultures. People tend to conclude that all Latinos talk with an accent because they are less educated than natural born Americans. The main goal of the directors of any film especially an interracial film should be to give the audience a sense of how individuals of different cultures perform to give them some knowledge on different races.
Racial performativity is acceptable to a certain extent, depending on the person and their race. African American genes have shown to be very strong. A person who is half white and half black looks more “black” in physical appearance, therefore acting black is acceptable even though the individual is not one hundred percent African American. However, if a white person were to act black, individuals regardless of their race might find it a bit offensive and view it as mockery. Another great example of this type of negative imitation is how the Puerto Rican characters in West Side Story were played. This type of mockery can cause controversy in society and one can take it very offensive. This is why it is highly encouraged that people who have authority over a film to use actors of the same race or ethnicity in order to keep the film’s originality and result in the audience satisfaction.