Fight Club
A 1996 novel by Chuck Palahniuk, and a 1999 film by David Fincher.
Study Guide
Characters
The Narrator
The protagonist of the story who suffers from insomnia and has a split personality. Because of his insomnia, he starts attending support groups to see what real suffering is like. After a while of attending them, he meets Tyler Durden and forms Fight Club. This begins to be his new support group. We never find out his name in the story. We only know his other personality, Tyler.
Tyler Durden
He is the narrators devious side of his personality. He is the one who technically made the way for the Fight Club when he said to the narrator "hit me as hard as you can." The narrator wanted to be more like Tyler even though the are the same person.
Marla Singer
The narrator meets her at the support groups he was attending. He beings to hate her for being a tourist. He could not let himself go when there was another faker there. She ends up being Tyler (and the narrator's) lover.
Big Bob
He is a man the narrator meets at the testicular cancer support groups. He develops brests from having to take more estrogen. The narrator makes friends with him and Bob joins a fight club. He ends up getting shot while doing something for Project Mayhem, and dies.
Major Themes
The Feminization of Men
Redefining or Rediscovering Masculinity
The Numbing Effects of Modern Life
[More to be added.]
Major Symbols
The Rules of Fight Club
1st RULE: You do not talk about FIGHT CLUB.
2nd RULE: You DO NOT talk about FIGHT CLUB.
3rd RULE: If someone says "stop" or goes limp, taps out the fight is over.
4th RULE: Only two guys to a fight.
5th RULE: One fight at a time.
6th RULE: No shirts, no shoes.
7th RULE: Fights will go on as long as they have to.
8th RULE: If this is your first night at FIGHT CLUB, you HAVE to fight.
Fight Club in Contemporary Culture
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Influences
F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby
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Fight Club the film
Additional Resources
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Works Cited
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