(Harold) Athol Fugard, a white South African who grew up during the 1930s and 1940s, tried to oppose the prevalent racism among other white South Africans of that era. Despite this, there was a time when Fugard compelled his black servants to address him as Master Harold and spat in the face of one servant he considered a close friend. Fugard, who later emerged as one of South Africa’s most outspoken writers against apartheid, reflected on this regrettable event in his play ‘‘Master Harold’’ . . . and the Boys (1982).

Some scholars suggest that Mulatto was inspired by one of Hughes’s short stories titled ‘‘Father and Son.’’ However, this story, which depicts a conflict between a mulatto son and his white father, was not published until 1934, in The Ways of White Folks, after Hughes had already written Mulatto. The story serves as a meaningful comparison to Mulatto since Hughes explores a similar theme.

In The Color of Water: A Black Man’s Tribute to His White Mother (1996), James McBride examines the identity struggles that many mulatto children endure due to their mixed heritage. Unlike in Mulatto, the white parent in McBride’s book, his mother, embraces her mulatto child and fights against racism, poverty, and other challenges to support him.

Amy Tan’s The Joy Luck Club (1989) explores the difficulties Chinese American women face in balancing their Chinese and American identities. Set in 1980s San Francisco, the book primarily uses flashbacks and is structured into sixteen distinct stories that delve into the Chinese American experience. Each story is narrated by either a Chinese-born mother or her American-born daughter.

Richard Wright’s Native Son (1940), a seminal novel about the struggles of African Americans, follows the life of Bigger Thomas, a young African American man in 1930s Chicago. The racism and poverty he endures lead him to accidentally kill a white woman. Following this incident, Thomas discovers that his options are severely limited.