The line that I found the most interesting in Fight Club was Brad Pitt's line, "Self-improvement is masturbation. Self-destruction..." implying that self-destruction is akin to sex.
This fascination and obsession with self-destruction that pervades throughout the movie is really telling of various characters. Considering that Tyler (as embodied by Brad Pitt) is just a figment of the narrator's imagination, the self-destruction ultimately becomes his own. One thing that puzzled me about Tyler's character throughout the film (before we found out who he really was) was that he talks about being nameless and being nothing, and sacrificing one's identity for a higher purpose. And yet he turned himself into practically a God, with a Christ-like following. He glamorized himself very intensely, and really seemed to be enjoying the level of worship he was getting from his disciples. But when we realize that Brad Pitt is actually just a part of Edward Norton's character, it takes on an entirely new meaning.No longer concerned with glamour, Tyler hides his own powerful identity from himself, making his conscious side feel inferior to his more charismatic self. The fact that he hides himself from his consciousness is an embodiment of the "zero" identity he preaches his followers must take on.
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