Stella passing for white in The Vanishing Half is an act of conformity. The term refers to behaving in accordance with some standard or authority. In the narrative, Stella acknowledges the power that the white population had in the novel which reflects the discussed concept (“Conformity”). She decides to escape with her sister Desiree because Stella is afraid of a white man who has been molesting her (Bennett 148). Although she acts as a rebel when leaving home, Stella believes she will be safe away from that man and pretending to be white is one way of securing that safety. Even though some people are not willing to conform to standards, there are situations when conformity is inevitable.
In the passing, Stella expresses conformity by wanting to be like those around her. After parting ways with Desiree, Stella is alone in a place where she does not know anybody (Bennett 64). However, she then meets her boss and future husband, Blake, who lives a life that Stella has always desired to have (Bennett 142). Blake came from a good family, was a graduate from a prominent college, and grew up “swimming in whites-only pools” (Bennett 147). In contrast, Stella was from a struggling household, could not afford college, and spent much time outdoors.
Stella decides to pass for white to feel as if she were one of the more fortunate members of society. Finally, Stella continues pretending to be white because it guaranteed her an honorable life (Al Areqi 51). Prior to meeting her husband, Stella had “never felt comfortable” (Bennet 147). Nevertheless, after years of living as a white, she begins to appreciate what she used to have.
In conclusion, conformity is a difficult phenomenon since it demands much self-control to refrain one’s past experience from being expressed in a new reality. In the native, Stella decides to live as a white, however, she starts to regret having made this choice because she has lost many things from her past life. Regardless of truly believing in white supremacy or not, Stella passed for white and persisted in doing so because she wished to have a quiet life without being concerned about anything.
Works Cited
Al Areqi, Rashad Mohammed Moqbel. “Race and Identity in Brit Bennett’s The Vanishing Half.” AWEJ for Translation & Literary Studies, vol. 6, no, 1, 2022, pp. 40-52.
Bennett, Brit. The Vanishing Half. Penguin Publishing Group, 2020.
“Conformity.” Merriam-Webster Dictionary, 2022.