Philosophy 100 Film Night

Danielson 11/14/03

Fight Club
Assignment: Look for the following themes in the film. Then choose one to write an analysis which is due next Friday 11/21. Present how the theme is demonstrated in the film as well as your reflections on the topic. General Social Criticisms Is the film a warning against the kind of reaction Tyler and the narrator depict, or is the film in a way providing the kind of numbing, violent visuals that are part of the very phenomena that is railed against, the angst, and soul-less modern world of IKEA and work as mindless drudgery and travel as mirror images of every other place? What is the significance of the early scenes at support groups? E.g. When the narrator says, more or less, that here people really listen to you and arent waiting to talk next. (What does this suggest about our modern communication and lack of authenticity? When Tyler says were a generation of men raised by women, is it yet another attack on women only in the reverse this time? What does Marla represent to as Ed Nortons character (Name?) when he is angry at her tourist status at support groups? If Tyler Durden is a leader of men, inspiring the disconnected youth, do any of them make any real transformations? Explain the significance of the following quote: We are the middle children of history, raised by television to believe that someday we'll be millionaires and movie stars and rock stars, but we won't. And we're starting to figure that out. Is this the ultimate porn for main stream macho culture? Men having sex, oops I mean fighting indiscriminately with other men? Taoism: There is a web site with a Taoist interpretation of the film. http://strykerxbase.tripod.com/writings/taoism.htm The Yin Yang is one of the primary principles of Taoist teachings. The concept of two forces present everywhere, completely opposite to each other yet balancing and enhancing each other. They cannot be separated because they exist together in comparison, and splitting one apart will only create the other anew. Although one force can take prevalence over the other for a short time, anything that is in a state of imbalance for long will cease to exist. The universe is composed of and held together by the tension of these two forces. Another central Taoist concept is Wu-Wei, which can be translated as "the action that comes from not doing". Though there are multiple interpretations of the Chinese character symbolizing this concept, the general idea seems to be another paradox; to accomplish something by doing nothing. Spiritual Journey: Ritual: A definition of ritual would be: ' any formal action which is set apart from profane action and which expresses sacred and religious meaning. Jary (1991:522). This however is too rigid a definition because in Fight Club the ritualization of violence is perhaps itself a profanity, which is consecrated by a sub-culture who endeavors to subvert anything that is considered sacred by societal standards. Hence acts of profanation and desecration can themselves be made sanctified because of the symbolic interpretations that are attached to them. Consequently ritual action may therefore be regarded as occurring in both the sacred and profane domains of cultural life. Nietzsche in Fight Club http://caxton.stockton.edu/Juxtaposition/stories/storyReader$39 After explaining the paradox of the cage-like freedom, a result of being liberated through the death of God and the nature of all life as a will to power, Friedrich Nietzsche predicts the next step in human evolution, the ubermensch (or overman). Nietzsche's outline for the overman as a possible to solution to the paradox of freedom is prevalent in the film Fight Club. The overman, says Nietzsche, must be willed: we must not be content with our current state of mediocrity, but strive for perfection. Nietzsche points out, though, that if perfection is accomplished, then the process has ended, and growth ceases. The overman seeks to overcome everything she/he has internalized from external sources, especially society and religion. "The striving for distinction," as Nietzsche calls it, is the process of creating something that is truly one's own (a self); through the will to power, the overman reaches self-realization, but does not stop there. Because of the "will of spirit," the overman continually creates a new self by surpassing (overcoming) the old self: by continually taking risks and always accepting responsibility for her/his actions and values, the overman lives by her/his self-created values, realizing she/he is these actions, thus acquiring freedom through growth.

Buddhism In general, (although amongst other things), the narrator is looking for spiritual enlightenment (Nirvana or Zenith) in his life and this can be shown through his journey in the movie. The orientation of the film shows the narrator 'suffering' due to the consumerist values and the 'should' and 'shouldn't' values that society and his parents passed on to him. As a consequence the narrator's true 'self', the primal and instinctive 'self', is concealed by a thick veneer of social conditioning. To reach enlightenment and a sense of acceptance of his life, he creates Tyler Durden. In Buddhism it is believed that the path to enlightenment involves a teacher to shake off the values that you have been led to believe and suffer under, and the ability to become independent from your teacher and finally reach happiness and acceptance. I believe that when the narrator begins to create Tyler Durden, he does it because he wishes to find salvation and happiness and Tyler is his teacher.