Going to fight club is kind of like going to church. It fosters a sense of community and its members find a purpose in life. Also, just as many religions give their followers a vision of an afterlife, fight club, too, lets its members know there's a purpose in dying.
However, with fight club people aren't dying because it's some sort of invisible deity's greater plan…or are they? Tyler Durden is an invisible deity, and people dying does further his plan. Tyler wants people to be able to face death, and accept death, so that they're not scared to die for Project Mayhem. It may seem grim, but he also encourages people to live every day like it might be their last. In Project Mayhem, it very well might be.
Questions about Mortality
- How does our narrator react when Bob dies? How does this compare with the way the rest of Project Mayhem reacts? How does it compare with how he acts when he hears that Chloe has died?
- Does our narrator ever come to terms with the fact that he will eventually die? By killing Tyler, is he denying that he will one day die, or is he accepting it?
- Is Marla's suicide really "one of those cry for help things" or is she serious about killing herself?
Chew on This
Marla says she wants to die, but when she thinks she may have cancer, she panics. She's not actually ready for death.
Just as the support groups are about embracing life, so is fight club. It's about feeling every sensation possible before death. Even the bad ones.