When We Collided

The impact of societal and self-imposed roles is a pervading theme throughout the entirety of Lord’s When We Collided. One’s role and how one either succeeds or fails under the pressures of it are examined thoroughly in the story. Be it the position that society gives a character or a station that they choose to take on, the characters are nonetheless affected by their responsibilities and pressures. This can be seen several times throughout the novel. Be it Vivi’s self-imposed role as Jonah’s savior or Jonah’s new mantle as his family’s caretaker, all the characters have things required of them, either by others or by themselves that they struggle to meet. This can be seen most clearly in Vivi’s decision to “save” Jonah.

Vivi positions herself as Jonah’s savior from the moment she meets him. She gives herself the role, taking full responsibility for Jonah’s moods and emotions:

When I met Jonah Daniels yesterday, there was a magical shift in the trajectory of my summer. He’s the ring to my Frodo, the wardrobe to my Lucy Pevensie. His presence in my life sets me on my journey, and I can feel it, a vital mission pulsing in my bones. Here is a boy who needs me (51).

Jonah becomes a project for Vivi, something to take up her time and keep her entertained. Lord’s allusions and comparisons here are particularly telling of the way Vivi views Jonah. Initially, Jonah is viewed almost purely as a plot device, the entryway to adventure: Jonah is the “ring” from The Lord of the Rings and the “wardrobe” from The Chronicles of Narnia. He becomes a project for her, less of a person and more of a distraction from her own struggles. Vivi makes herself fit another role as well, that of the Manic Pixie Dream Girl.

The Manic Pixie Dream Girl is common stock character trope coined by film critic Nathan Rabin. He defines the Manic Pixie Dream Girl as a female character who exists only as the catalyst for change and happiness for a male character. These characters are generally static, with little to no characterization outside of their eccentric traits. Lord is utilizing this trope and turning it on its head; Vivi is leaning into the Manic Pixie Dream Girl role because it keeps her from being vulnerable and known. This is exemplified by Vivi’s reaction to Jonah showing up at her house after the incident with her father:

I don’t feel like putting makeup on, and I don’t care if Jonah sees me bare-branched. Normally, I care a lot, but I don’t have the energy to be his Vivi today, not by a long shot. So let him see that my eyelashes are golden brown and not thick black, that my cheeks are actually fair and not flushed rose (157).

This is the first time that Vivi allows Jonah to see her in a way that she has not chosen to be seen. Lord’s use of diction, as in Vivi’s specification that “his Vivi” is separate from the vulnerable Vivi without make-up, is especially telling. The position Vivi decides to fill changes her dynamic with Jonah slightly. Lord initially writes her as an almost-savior, one who makes Jonah smile and helps babysit his younger siblings. However, Vivi is unable to perform and bear the weight of someone else’s emotions, especially when she has been ignoring her own. After Jonah shouts at his younger siblings, he goes to her in the height of her mania. They part ways after their argument, angry and unable to glean what they wanted from the other, despite trying to be what the other needed.

The novel does not end with Jonah and Vivi learning how to be in a relationship together or learning how to be what the other needs. Instead, it ends with Vivi and Jonah both stripping themselves of the roles they have taken on, either to protect themselves or their family, and learning how to improve themselves and continue to grow.