Identity and Double Consciousness
I want to talk about identity in relation to George Hodges: the confused, badly behaved man in ‘Masquerade’; the man who is hiding behind a version of himself which cannot feel true to his selfhood. If any of us were asked a question about how we identify, quite naturally we would probably talk about where we were born and grew up, who exerted the most influence in our lives and the people or issues closest to us.
In the nineteenth century, WEB Dubois talked about what he termed as ‘double consciousness’, in relation to how oppressed people had to deal with dual identities: ‘by double consciousness Dubois referred most importantly to an internal conflict in the African American individual between what was ‘African’ and what was ‘American’. Today, a hundred plus years later, I think the modern interpretation of double consciousness is more about how a lot of us need to navigate ways of developing adequate coping strategies within a society where the default position is considered more acceptable. One example: perhaps conforming and trying to ignore certain attitudes and judgements as a way of surviving, responding to preconceived notions or questions which suggest that you do not really belong … topics for another day …
Consider then George Hodges making the extremely dangerous decision to ‘pass’ as white in America at a time when it was against the law and led to serious consequences if discovered. He naively thought that in doing so, he would be able to lead the high life he had dreamed of. And he did so, usually at the expense of wealthy white women. But leading such a life came at some considerable cost to his racial identity and his feelings of remorse and guilt about the family he had rejected. America was depicted as ‘the promised land’ in the Hollywood movies that he loved; he blandly dismissed the roles played by African American actors as he watched.
Having made the choice, the life he chose was not as straightforward as he had thought it would be and there are references throughout the text of his inner turmoil. That’s until he came to realize what part jazz played in his reflections, together with the love and loyalty of one of the women in his life. When you read it, you will pick up on his interiority.
Laters everyone.
Anna
In the nineteenth century, WEB Dubois talked about what he termed as ‘double consciousness’, in relation to how oppressed people had to deal with dual identities: ‘by double consciousness Dubois referred most importantly to an internal conflict in the African American individual between what was ‘African’ and what was ‘American’. Today, a hundred plus years later, I think the modern interpretation of double consciousness is more about how a lot of us need to navigate ways of developing adequate coping strategies within a society where the default position is considered more acceptable. One example: perhaps conforming and trying to ignore certain attitudes and judgements as a way of surviving, responding to preconceived notions or questions which suggest that you do not really belong … topics for another day …
Consider then George Hodges making the extremely dangerous decision to ‘pass’ as white in America at a time when it was against the law and led to serious consequences if discovered. He naively thought that in doing so, he would be able to lead the high life he had dreamed of. And he did so, usually at the expense of wealthy white women. But leading such a life came at some considerable cost to his racial identity and his feelings of remorse and guilt about the family he had rejected. America was depicted as ‘the promised land’ in the Hollywood movies that he loved; he blandly dismissed the roles played by African American actors as he watched.
Having made the choice, the life he chose was not as straightforward as he had thought it would be and there are references throughout the text of his inner turmoil. That’s until he came to realize what part jazz played in his reflections, together with the love and loyalty of one of the women in his life. When you read it, you will pick up on his interiority.
Laters everyone.
Anna
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