"Passing" is one pretending to be something or someone he or she is not. Some people today "pass" as "gay for straight" or "black for white" to be accepted by others. Two examples of individuals switching their identities are the narrator in "The Autobiography of an Ex-Coloured Man" by James Weldon Johnson and the author, John Howard Griffin, in "Black Like Me." The protagonist in the novel passes because he is confused about whether he is white or black and in the memoir, Griffin pretends to be black to write a news article and understand what it is like to be Negro. These two figures learn how switching identity can change one's image in society's eyes.

In "The Autobiography of an Ex-Coloured Man," passing is very important to the narrator. This main character is confused about whether he is black or white. He lives in Europe that does...