Passing, Chapter One Summary

Irene Richfield has received an extravagant-looking letter from Clare Kendry, postmarked from New York. Irene remembers their childhood friendship, Clare's drunken, violent father and Clare's ability to stay focused on her self and her own need to keep sewing a dress. When Clare was fifteen, her father's body was brought home; Clare's reaction was an angry outburst. Clare once clawed boys who made fun of her father; Irene compares her to a cat with superior strength and a soft, hidden malice. Clare's letter reveals her desire to see Irene and mentions their former meeting in Chicago two years prior, which brings a flush to Irene's cheeks, somehow bringing up feelings of humiliation, rage and resentment. Irene has no intention of seeing Clare or helping her revisit the past she had turned her back on years ago.

Passing, Chapter One Analysis