The story “Mirror Image” by Lena Coakley is about the character Alice trying to find her true self in the midst of an identity crisis. The character’s struggle was caused when she and her dad had an accident where she made it but her dad didn’t. But the thing is, her body didn’t quite make it too. So they had to do a brain transplant. Now Alice is considered as a new person by her sister but she is in denial with it. Her twin sister Jenny is also quite upset and feels she is but a stranger to their home.
Having a new body, she described her appearance in the story. On her new body, she seems to be slim and more mature than her old body. It is proved when she said there were no cellulites on her thighs which are fats found in thighs and buttocks. Also, she said her body weighed much more than her old body meaning her new body is more mature . Another trait indicated in the story was she had clean and pretty face. On the story, Alice said that no one told her that she was ugly and her face never had zits on it. Lastly she had big brown eyes. In the hospital when she’s in bed and got her body, when she looked into the mirror, she saw an unfamiliar face, her face with big brown eyes.
Alice can be described as an adaptive person. She learned to adapt to her new body and to her new friends, new environment. Alice is also a proud person. She keeps boasting about her new features compared to old body. Alice is also confident. Since she got her body replaced she decided to join cheerleading. And she had the confidence that Alice and her family will get through this struggle of hers.
In the story, the character focused on finding herself. Her motivation was to prove what’s inside that body of hers is the same Alice they know and used to be with. Evidence is that her sister won’t let her read her diary for a reason that Jenny is no longer comfortable being with her and looks at her as a stranger to their house. Also, it is on the part where she tasted the cake and her taste buds didn’t like it. She wants to prove that the chocolate with mocha cream cake that her mother made for her was still her favourite cake even after the body change. Lastly, Alice wants to show that what Mr. Jarred saw and talked to was not her daughter Gail, but a different person, her accent, the way she walks and even when he looked into her eyes.
If brain transplant were ever possible, anyone may be in a position like Alice where she had to go find her true self lost in the midst of an identity crisis. It may be hard but the character was able to adapt to her new body, following the consequences that her sister sees her as a stranger and unsure about her having a new body.