I Am Not Jessica Chen

The central premise of Ann Liang’s I Am Not Jessica Chen rests on a trope known as the “body swap” trope. This is a storytelling device in which two entities—often humans, but sometimes different beings—swap consciousnesses to end up in each other’s bodies. Some early examples in fiction include the 19th-century novel Vice Versa, as well as the children’s book, Freaky Friday (1972), which has also been adapted into a mainstream movie (Burnett, Dean. “Body Swapping: The Science Behind the Switch.” The Guardian, 2014). Contemporary examples with their own twist on the trope include David Levithan’s young adult novel Every Day (2012), and Airhead (2008) by Meg Cabot.

The body swap trope can be employed in two different ways. In the first, the switch occurs by way of some unexplained magic, such as a wish that is granted or a machination of the universe. In the second, some sort of technological aid allows the swap to happen using logic that fits within the book’s universe, such as Richard Morgan’s series, Altered Carbon. In Liang’s novel, Jenna’s fervent wish upon a shooting star is implied to have led to the body swap.

While the trope itself is a common one, Liang puts her own spin on it. For one, it is not a complete “swap”: While Jenna inhabits Jessica’s body and life, Jessica simply retreats from hers. This is concurrent with respective wishes the cousins make, feeding into the themes of the book: Jenna specifically wishes for Jessica’s life, while Jessica simply wishes to not be herself. Each of these wishes speaks to the respective arcs that Jenna and Jessica’s characters follow and what role comparison and expectation play in their specific stories. Additionally, it allows Liang to keep the narrative focus on a single character: Only Jenna’s story is relevant, as she is the one who continues to “exist” and live out a specific life.

The nature of the swap also underscores why Liang chooses magic to initiate the swap as opposed to a technological explanation. The latter employment of the trope often skews toward horror, while in a context like Jenna and Jessica’s, the focus is more on themes surrounding self-discovery and identity. These ideas are explored in Liang’s novel through Jenna’s character arc.

Additionally, the non-technological explanation for the body swap ensures that there is secrecy surrounding “Jessica’s” real identity, allowing Liang to also explore themes of social roles and physical appearances, and how these impact identity as well. For instance, some things come easier to Jenna as “Jessica” simply because of how Jessica looks and how she is already perceived by her peers. Other things, however, remain unattainable even with Jessica’s brilliance, such as when Jenna discovers that “Jessica” can be overlooked in favor of someone with a different racial and class identity than hers. In this manner, Liang employs and adapts the body swap trope to suit the book’s narrative focus and thematic exploration.