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Nella Larsen, a mysterious figure in the Harlem Renaissance, had a complex life and a short but impactful writing career.
As a literature student in college, I first read her works during a Harlem Renaissance class. Last year, after reading The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett, I picked up The Complete Fiction of Nella Larsen.
Nella was of mixed ancestry, with a Black father in America and a White mother from Denmark. This complex position is often reflected in her fiction.
Her writing is very interior, with the action taking place inside the minds of her heroines. In Quicksand, Helga Crane feels caught between two worlds, too Black for the White society of her mother's family and too White among people of color.
In Passing, Clare passes as White, married to a racist. The story shows the isolation and fear that come with passing, as well as the disdain of the Black community.
Larsen's characters are complex, with both admirable qualities and personality defects. Her writing highlights the limitations of being an upper-middle class woman of color in the 1920s and addresses the intersectionality of racism, sexism, and classism.
I think Larsen's writing was ahead of her time, and she does a wonderful job of showing the contradictions and difficulties of navigating upper-middle class Black society as a biracial woman.
Although her writing career was short-lived, Nella Larsen's works continue to be studied and admired for their depth and complexity.
As a literature student in college, I first read her works during a Harlem Renaissance class. Last year, after reading The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett, I picked up The Complete Fiction of Nella Larsen.
Nella was of mixed ancestry, with a Black father in America and a White mother from Denmark. This complex position is often reflected in her fiction.
Her writing is very interior, with the action taking place inside the minds of her heroines. In Quicksand, Helga Crane feels caught between two worlds, too Black for the White society of her mother's family and too White among people of color.
In Passing, Clare passes as White, married to a racist. The story shows the isolation and fear that come with passing, as well as the disdain of the Black community.
Larsen's characters are complex, with both admirable qualities and personality defects. Her writing highlights the limitations of being an upper-middle class woman of color in the 1920s and addresses the intersectionality of racism, sexism, and classism.
I think Larsen's writing was ahead of her time, and she does a wonderful job of showing the contradictions and difficulties of navigating upper-middle class Black society as a biracial woman.
Although her writing career was short-lived, Nella Larsen's works continue to be studied and admired for their depth and complexity.
