Textual Analysis Essay on Fight Club
Gina Ferrari
Eric Netterlund
Fall 2011
Textual Analysis Essay
The classic 1996 film Fight Club is a social commentary about our generation, which is in many ways devoid of spirit and marked by consumerism. It is the story of a man's spiritual journey towards enlightenment in modern society and his attempt to find his place in the world. It stresses a post-modern consumer society, reveals the loss of masculine identity amongst gray-collar workers, and examines the social stratification marked by our developing society. It follows the life of the narrator, who is referred to as Jack, (Edward Norton) as he struggles with insomnia and feelings of inadequacy in his desperate search to find meaning in his own life. The film, although controversial, reveals issues in modern society by revealing the development of the narrator through his friendship with Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt). Durden is a man of influence and power who possesses all of the qualities the narrator lacks. Their friendship develops as the film progresses, but when Durden’s motives unfold, the film ultimately reveals the split personality of the narrator himself, who is in fact Tyler Durden.
In the very opening scenes, the film conveys a strong feeling of sympathy for the Narrator. With dim and gloomy lighting, the film consists of scenes showing the day-to-day life of the Narrator as he simply goes through the motions. His life appears to be miserable and exhausting; he has temporarily fallen into the pressures of society. His apartment appears to own him more than he own it. He finds himself searching for an outlet to escape the feminized culture that he, along with many other men have become a part of. The beginning of the film focuses in on the Narrators struggle with insomnia. He makes an appointment to see a doctor about sleeping pills; however, he refuses to prescribe them. “But I'm in pain,” he says to which the doctor replies, “If you want to see pain go to the testicular cancer support
Eric Netterlund
Fall 2011
Textual Analysis Essay
The classic 1996 film Fight Club is a social commentary about our generation, which is in many ways devoid of spirit and marked by consumerism. It is the story of a man's spiritual journey towards enlightenment in modern society and his attempt to find his place in the world. It stresses a post-modern consumer society, reveals the loss of masculine identity amongst gray-collar workers, and examines the social stratification marked by our developing society. It follows the life of the narrator, who is referred to as Jack, (Edward Norton) as he struggles with insomnia and feelings of inadequacy in his desperate search to find meaning in his own life. The film, although controversial, reveals issues in modern society by revealing the development of the narrator through his friendship with Tyler Durden (Brad Pitt). Durden is a man of influence and power who possesses all of the qualities the narrator lacks. Their friendship develops as the film progresses, but when Durden’s motives unfold, the film ultimately reveals the split personality of the narrator himself, who is in fact Tyler Durden.
In the very opening scenes, the film conveys a strong feeling of sympathy for the Narrator. With dim and gloomy lighting, the film consists of scenes showing the day-to-day life of the Narrator as he simply goes through the motions. His life appears to be miserable and exhausting; he has temporarily fallen into the pressures of society. His apartment appears to own him more than he own it. He finds himself searching for an outlet to escape the feminized culture that he, along with many other men have become a part of. The beginning of the film focuses in on the Narrators struggle with insomnia. He makes an appointment to see a doctor about sleeping pills; however, he refuses to prescribe them. “But I'm in pain,” he says to which the doctor replies, “If you want to see pain go to the testicular cancer support