Favorite Read of 2020
On the eve of the New Year, I finished Brit Bennetts second Novel, The Vanishing Half. This Novel was released in the earlier half of the Summer, and gained wide spread acclaim. The novel is written in a nonlinear narrative structure, and broken down into five parts.
The synopsis of this narrative reflects that of Fannie Hurst 1933 novel, Imitation of Life. The novel later on became a film of the same name, and is regarded as one of the most important Films that discusses the structure of Race.
The Vanishing Half is a story about generational trauma that is rooted in colorism, and how its parasitic invasion disrupts the bonds between twin sisters , as well as mother and daughters. Brit Bennett writes of a mysterious town, Mallard, located in Louisiana, that consist of nothing but lighter skinned Black people. For generations, members of this community aimed to establish a society that would be close proximity to white society, and the more fair skinned, the better.
In the 1940’s, twin sisters Desiree and Stella witnessed the lynching of their father- who’s family is one of the founding members of the Mallard community. This unprecedented murder of their father, was something they were unable to understand. What exactly did their father do to deserved to be murdered?
By 1954, When the girls were 16, they decided to run off to New Orleans, to some how obtain a life they knew was impossible to get a hold of back at Mallard. Or maybe they just wanted to escape the “Mississippi Damned Complex” of their hometown. . Regardless, they knew that they had to go. Together, both girls did everything they could to survive the big city life, that is until one day Stella left; without a word to Desiree.
Years later, Desiree returns back to Mallard, after fleeing an uncanny situation , and brought along an unlikely companion- her dark skinned daughter. The child is like an eyesore to the rest of the community, and at a very young age , she must combat living a life distinctly different from her peers and family. This experience shapes her perception of the worldview on dark-skinned people, and this mindset follows her well into her adulthood.
Simultaneously, Stella was living the life of a white woman. Exactly. Stella passed over, and was going through life as white societies purest entity. She never disclosed her true self to anyone, not even her own daughter, Kennedy. Stella erased any trace of her life from her, so that those around her will not know who she truly is. Which is a fair skinned black woman, but a black woman nonetheless.
When you lie you are running away from the truth, and at some point, the truth will always catch up. This happened to Stella, when her niece Jude caught site of her, and was unable to let the thought of her go. The comfortable life that Stella knew, began to unravel.
In comparison to the Imitation of Life, we see an instance where white passing Black people pass over to live a more accessible life. Brit Bennet pens together an interesting tale of two identical twin sisters, who share more differences than anything. Desiree continued to live her life the way she knew, and was met with constant strife, abuse and disappointment. When Stella abandoned her life as a fair skinned Black woman, she by extension, abandoned her family, her memories and her other half.
We see how societal expectations, drive personal beliefs. We also see, how, in some cases, Black people value proximity to whiteness, and will abandon purpose-built aspects of life , to somehow “Vanish” who they are at a chance to venture to the other side.
On the surface level, one can see that it is a story that touches on colorism and escapism, but below the surface, once the reader gets in between the lines, thew will unveil the societies implications that aid in the erasure of Black people. What makes this novel extraordinary, is that Brit Bennet leaves no stone unturned. Considering that this story takes place during some of the most conservative times in American history, and she included a spectrum of storylines from sexuality, identity and gender- is a real testament to her innovation as a writer.
