Fight Club Essay -- Literary Analysis, Chuck Palahniuk

Chuck Palahniuks Fight corporation is a seductive novel which chronicles an unnamed narrators aptitude to cope with an emasculated, self-centered, materialistic society by creating an alter ego. Throughout the text, the ascendent of the emasculated modern military mankind is presented both in the life of the narrator, and in the lives of the male characters he surrounds himself with. Through notions of absent fathers, consumerism and an stainless/aimless existence, Palahniuk presents how manpower in modern society have lost their manlike indistinguishability and the extreme actions they go to in aver to obtain it again. Belittled by their absent fathers, broken homes, and a feminine-centered society, the men in Fight order present an incisive notion of the lives of modern men. With no outlet for building the modern man is, in all aspects of his life, physically emasculated and randyly castrated. Palahniuk represents the cultural loss of masculine identity in the second c hapter of the text. A conference of men sit together in a view as group, helping one another cope with the emasculation they are doom to face. The support group, The Remaining Men Together, is for testicular cancer, meaning the men self-collected are literally castrated. The men presented in the group struggle with emotional castration as well. One man, Big Bob, is revealed as a precedent body builder (a rather masculine profession) who abused steroids trading in his huevos for bitch tits (Palahniuk 21). Bob has also been divorced three times and is at present bankrupt with two grown kids who will not return his calls (22). Big Bob and the dwell of the group are emasculated and revert to emotional release, yell and group hugging, as their form of therapy. An emotional release such as crying is... ...he world free of history (124) and create a new order where men are prominent. Similar to the experience of fight club, the men in the new order must rely on instinct and posi tion in order to succeed. Therefore the ability to endure pain is a way to attain power and masculinity. Chuck Palahniuks Fight ennead is the story of the emasculated man living in the postmodern world. With no father to raise him he is left to his own devices. The grown man will ultimately succumb what culture tells him a man is, oft relying on materialistic possessions to define his identity. As a result, the postmodern man becomes a slave to the social order and power relations of pompous society. Although he fits in with this society the emasculated man is miserable with his innocuous existence. Fight club, however, is the means in which he can restore his masculine identity.