The play with identity is, however, most clearly represented in the main characters split personality. We never knew they were the same person, because even though they shared the same body, they were two different personalities.Tyler is blunt, exciting and gets what he wants. He is someone the space monkeys look up to, because of his strong opinions. The narrator, on the other hand, is a weak personality - so much so that we never get a clear name. He himself uses several names, and though we as readers/viewers might think his name is Jack, this is never confirmed.  

 

After some time, Project Mayhem is created by him and Tyler. Project Mayhem's main purpose is to create a financial crash, which would affect the whole nation. Not a single individual would have economic debt - everyone would be equal. This would change the consumer society and the population might figure out, that they will not become millionaires, movie gods and rock gods as they have been raised by the television to believe. 

 

“God damn it, an entire generation pumping gas, waiting tables; slaves with white collars. Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy shit we don't need.”

"It's not love or anything," Marla shouts, "but I think I like you too." As we also see in this quotation love is a big deal to the characters in Fight Club. You cannot just love someone and you can especially not just say that you love them. Marla has also some personal problems that makes her relationship to the narrator awkward and indefinable. It is clear that she knows that she feels something for the narrator but instead of saying: “I love you” she says: “I think I like you”, maybe because she thinks she will be less hurt if it is not retaliated. 
 "And if there were a telephone in Heaven, I would call Marla from Heaven and the moment she says, "Hello," I wouldn't hang up. I'd say, "Hi. What's happening? Tell me every little thing." 

This quotation shows that the narrator finally in the end of the film is able to love just a little bit. He intimates that he is ready for Marla and ready to face his feelings for her, maybe because he has found himself and therefore is ready to handle love. 

In the beginning of the book and movie we see the Narrators pursuit of meaning in his emptiness by shopping for IKEA furniture’s for his house. He uses furniture to fill a void in his life, and because he has the void he feels that he must spend his money on couches, chairs, etc. in the attempt to find meaning and happiness: “You buy furniture. You tell yourself, this is the last sofa I will ever need in my life. Buy the sofa, then for a couple years you're satisfied […] Then the right set of dishes. Then the perfect bed. The drapes. The rug. Then you're trapped in your lovely nest, and the things you used to own, now they own you.” This is the quote Tyler Durden tells the Narrator in order to inform him about how a consumer thinks, and it is here that the project Mayhem comes into the picture, because if people do not have a debt all are on an equal footing and this might put an end to the consumer society.

 

On of the main themes in “Fight Club” is the consumer society in which we all experience in the postmodern society. In the movie/novel Chuck Palahniuk (author) and David Fincher (director) criticizes this hunt for new material stuff through the protagonist’s empty pursuit for new stuff to his apartment. This critique also shows that material stuff has come to play a too large role in our postmodern society and through the actions of our protagonist the author/director creates the idea of “Project Mayhem” with the purpose to reset the consumer society and return to ground zero. The big material influence in our modern lives is also shown in this quote where Tyler Durden explains the meaningless consuming: “ You buy furniture. You tell yourself, this is the last sofa I will ever need in my life. […] Then the right set of dishes. Then the perfect bed. The drapes. The rug. Then you’re trapped in your lovely neat, and the things you used to own, now own you.”

Identities are one of the main themes in the book Fight Book, because the protagonists in the book are actually only one character. Identities are reflected on the society Tyler is trying to destroy (consumer society), as we see through his monkeys. They chance their own identity or bring another identity out, when they choose fight club over families and jobs. Slowly the monkeys bring their identity from fight club with them out into the real world. An example could be Bob. He starts out crying his eyes out, holding the protagonist into his large bosom. His identity lies in the cancer he had. Then he joins project Mayhem, and becomes a different man, where nobody would notice, that he did not have any testicles, because in Fight Club he gets a new set, because he is fighting like a man, and he is taking action in Project Mayhem. Furthermore the conflict in the protagonist’s mind in the end combines his real identity, when we realize, that Tyler is a part of the protagonist. Therefor the theme is covering many themes in Fight Club like consumer society, love and masculinity.

In Fight Club, consumerism is a driving theme behind the narrative. As we first meet Jack, he is a shallow, miserable ”office-slave”. He is complettely caught up in  materialism, and uses his ”stuff” and ”things” to define himself. In the film and in the book, a monologue explains Jacks thoughts about the things in his appartment. Jack expresses a tendency that seems, in line with the theme of the book, highly evident in todays society; the use of material goods to build persona and identity. In Jacks case, it is to the point where he no longer owns the things, they own him. In regard to this, the character development of Jack is also sparked when he is ”freed” of his stuff. When his condo explodes.

I do agree with your point. But it is not only in his furniture he is trying to create an identity. It is also through the fight club, where he gets the chance to feel alive through pain and by that knowing who he is. If that makes sense? Tyler is trying to help him finding his identity, by pushing him to feel pain and do things he had never tried before and things he might be scared of doing. This can also be found in the near death experience and the chemical burn. 

Your post about masculinity was gripping, especially when you connect the consumer society with the loss of masculinity. The quote you are referring to is indeed underlining the fact, that the protagonist feels like the consumer society has ripped away man’s masculinity. On the other hand the loss of masculinity could symbolize an identity crisis, because it all leads back to the feeling inside the main character (and therefor also Tyler). Perhaps you could interpret, that masculinity is a subtheme to the theme identity. To comment more specifically on your language, it is very clear how you are interpreting the story through this theme, and you create sentences on a higher taxonomic level. 

 

 

Great and interesting writing about the many divorces in our postmodern society which (in most examples) results in a lack of father figures for the young boys. You’ve also found an interesting quote which sums up masculinity as a theme in “Fight Club” and maybe as the starting element for the fight club. Because we are all p****** in the postmodern society. Except from JJ.

I agree with your interpretation of the text. Masculinity is clearly one of the themes in the novel, which is supported by the way Fight Club represents the old-fashioned masculine values of being able to fight and hunt. As you also mention yourself it is linked to the consumer society, where men are becoming less “masculine” when they start caring about furniture, decorating and the consumer / material things. (Note: of course it depends on how masculinity is defined, because we cannot generalize on ground of whether or not a male likes to decorate. But in this case we use the stereotypical ideas of masculinity). Another reason for why the consumer society is a theme is the way “Project Mayhem” is all about going back to ground zero and starting over which basically means ending the consumer society through the banks.  

I think that you put several viable reasons for why identity could be answer on this theme question. I think it is quite noticeable, that you refer back to the consumer society. I believe that it is the consumer society, that causes the protagonist to create the other side om himself. So, the part with the identity issues and the split personality, emanate from the critique of the consumer society. I agree with you, that identity is one of the several themes of this movie, but I think it is more like an “under-theme” if that make sense 😉

You've made a great interpretation of the theme. The part with the split identities is especially interesting, because it is not clear from the beginning of the story, but it is stressed excessively in the end. Your point about Bob is also correct. However, it would've been benifitial to use a quote, that supports your statement.

For an example after his death, when his identity is revealed and they create a sort-of ceremony in his memory on page 178, ll. 6-13:

" "His name is Robert Paulson." And then the crowd yells, "His name is Robert Paulson." The leaders yell, "He is forty-eight years old." And then the crowd yells, "He is forty-eight years old." He is forty-eight years old, and he was part of fight club. He is forty-eight years old, and he was part of Project Mayhem."

-Matias

Your analysis is quite spot on and cut the bone. I agree that the story revolves around the fact that the narrator is missing something in his life that he tries to compensate for, by consuming materialistic things. But in addition to that i also think that it's due to a lack of identity and him not knowing what to do with his life and not being able to find himself. Maybe further point that he creates Tyler which is the exact opposite of himself to deal with it, because he is the exact opposite of a consumer. XoXo <3 ;* <3 ;* :----D (.)(.)