Tyler Durden’s Top 5 Tips for Living
Being a typical Generation X male, it’s no wonder I’ve always loved the movie Fight Club. Here we have Brad Pitt as Tyler Durden, all lean muscle and crazy blue eyes, smiling like a shark, raging against the great dark plagues of his generation:
Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes, working jobs we hate so we can buy [things] we don’t need. We’re the middle children of history… No purpose or place. We have no Great War. No Great Depression. Our great war is a spiritual war… our great depression is our lives.
Tyler was insane, of course – anyone who has seen the movie instantly understands that emulating Tyler Durden would involve psychosis, a padded cell, or life in prison, but that’s not really the point.
The point is that Tyler Durden symbolizes our outrage against the darker version of the American Dream: the endless parade of television commercials, consumerism, and materialism; the lack of meaning and purpose; the rat race; the great spiritual vacuum.
I do not pretend to be an expert on David Fincher’s remarkable movie or the Chuck Palahniuk novel from which it sprang, nor will I attempt to examine Fight Club’s themes comprehensively. I’m just a fan of the movie. Nothing more. And this is my attempt to capture what I affectionately call Tyler Durden’s Tips for Living: filtered for sanity and common sense by yours truly and brought to you in Tyler’s (or his alter ego’s) own words.
1. Don’t be a Mindless Consumer
We’re consumers. We are by-products of a lifestyle obsession. Murder, crime, poverty, these things don’t concern me. What concerns me are celebrity magazines, television with 500 channels, some guy’s name on my underwear. Rogaine, Viagra, Olestra.
The people I know who used to sit in the bathroom with pornography, now they sit in the bathroom with their IKEA furniture catalogue. You buy furniture. You tell yourself, this is the last sofa I will ever need in my life. Buy the sofa, then for a couple years you’re satisfied that no matter what goes wrong, at least you’ve got your sofa issue handled. Then the right set of dishes. Then the perfect bed. The drapes. The rug. Then you’re trapped in your lovely nest, and the things you used to own, now they own you.
You are not your job. You are not how much money you have in the bank.
You are not the car you drive.
Reject… the importance of material possessions.
2. Do Something Meaningful
This is your life and it’s ending one minute at a time.
Every word you read of this useless fine print is another second off your life. Don’t you have other things to do? Is your life so empty that you honestly can’t think of a better way to spend these moments?
What would you wish you’d done before you died? You have to know the answer to this question!
If you died right now, how would you feel about your life?
3. Think for Yourself
Or are you so impressed with authority that you give respect and credence to all that claim it? Do you read everything you’re supposed to read? Do you think every thing you’re supposed to think? Buy what you’re told to want?
4. Transcend Temporary, Unfulfilling Relationships
Single-serving sugar, single-serving cream, single pat of butter. The microwave Cordon Bleu hobby kit. Shampoo-conditioner combos, sample-packaged mouthwash, tiny bars of soap. The people I meet on each flight? They’re single-serving friends.
5. The Path to Enlightenment is Hard Work
I don’t wanna die without any scars.
Hitting bottom isn’t a weekend retreat. It’s not a… seminar.
Without pain, without sacrifice, we would have nothing.
And then, something happened. I let go. Lost in oblivion. Dark and silent and complete. I found freedom. Losing all hope was freedom.
It’s only after we’ve lost everything that we’re free to do anything.
Ironically, Tyler himself would hate having his knowledge pre-packaged as a self-help article, as he suggests in this slightly modified quotation:
Maybe self-improvement isn’t the answer…. Maybe self-destruction is the answer.
But thankfully for me, Tyler’s a fictional character (in more ways than one), and is unlikely to show up on my front stoop bloody-knuckled and ready to brawl. And to be honest, this isn’t really Tyler Durden’s Tips for Living. It’s a list of tips derived from Fight Club, heavily filtered by my own notions of self-improvement, and dredged for sanity and common sense.
I suppose I could have made this article about 2 pages longer by adding exposition and analysis to Tyler’s quotations, but why? The Internet is already overflowing with such analysis.
Given the tremendous cult-following that this movie enjoys, I’m quite sure someone will pop in here to tell me how I’ve misunderstood the movie or misinterpreted Tyler’s intentions. Fair enough. Just know this: fan of the movie or not, I’m not planning to throw any real-life punches anytime soon, so we’ll have to restrict our debate to the comments section of this Website, if it’s all the same to you.
And for those of you who haven’t seen the movie and who might consider doing so upon my recommendation, know this: the movie is vulgar, violent, sexual, bloody, and brimming with ideas that some people struggle to understand. According to the director, the movie was intended to be like a sharp stick in the eye. And it is.
But for so many members of the lost generation, what a wonderful and welcome stick in the eye it turned out to be.
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Friday, August 31st, 2007 at 3:23 pm under
Loved that movie, John. I think guys in the 20-40 age group can really relate to it, for one reason or another. Alot of critics didn’t get it. I’ve seen it like 6 times! :)
August 31st, 2007 at 6:08 pmHey George. Only guys can understand the movie?
August 31st, 2007 at 9:11 pmI think women are probably the #1 targeted group when it comes to advertising agencies. Fill that void, ladies, with every piece of crap imaginable! If your kids & husband don’t have X, you’re a failure!
Good movie. Misogyny be damned.
I never said only guys can understand the movie…. sorry if that’s how it sounded. I’m glad you liked it.
August 31st, 2007 at 9:51 pmMisogyny be damned…lol brilliant. aw man i havent seen it. but just by reading what you wrote John, dude I can relate to most of it.
Being a 22 year old, straight out of college…:( yea i need all the life help i can get, even if its from a movie xP
August 31st, 2007 at 9:57 pmHey, looks like we’re ready to start bare-knuckle brawling already. Tyler would be proud. :)
To both George and “a person”: I certainly hope my article did not give the impression that this movie is only accessible to men. I suppose if I were a betting man (and I’m not), I would say that the Bell Curve that represents this film’s hardcore cult following leans male and GenX or Y, but that’s just a guess, and I could be wrong.
And whether I’m right or wrong, I’m sure the film enjoys a large female fanbase.
And of course, the themes within the movie (fatherlessness, consumerism, meaninglessness, and more) are quite relevant to anyone living in the modern world, male or female, young or old.
All kidding aside, I thank you both for your thoughtful comments.
August 31st, 2007 at 10:03 pmLoved the post and the same goes without saying about the movie as well. You made me want to watch the movie again..
August 31st, 2007 at 10:27 pmAshwin/Andrew: Thanks for your comments, both of you.
September 1st, 2007 at 1:38 am[…] Tyler Durden’s Top 5 Tips for Living “Every word you read of this useless fine print is another second off your life. Don’t you […]
September 1st, 2007 at 1:01 pmWhat’s ironic is an article about Tyler’s wisdom, and you [people] afraid of stepping on each other toes in the comments section of it. Tyler would laugh at you all.
September 1st, 2007 at 1:11 pmNelson, as mentioned in the article, Tyler was certifiable; not a role model, and certainly not a model for effective communication. One need not buy into all of Tyler’s mannerisms wholesale to recognize the character’s insights.
Effective communication is a subject discussed in much depth elsewhere on this site; furthermore, I treat conversations on this Web Site very much like conversations in my own home.
You will notice that I have editted the name-calling from your post; I rarely have to do this sort of thing, since most of the members here seek productive exchange, but I will do my part occassionally to keep conversations civil and meaningful. What Tyler would think of such moderation is of no particular concern to me; after all, we’re talking about a guy who thought it would be fun to blow up buildings and point guns at people.
Fight Club is a thought provoking work of art with many important ideas; it is not a model for behavior.
September 1st, 2007 at 3:16 pmDo you know Tyler Durden?
This movie still comes to mind when I’m out shopping for new sheets or batteries for my digital camera, I am a slave to my things. My life is ending one second at a time.
I watched this movies because it started and I didn’t know what it was, it just came on HBO. the first minute of the movie was enough to make me turn off the TV and run to the corner video for the DVD so I could show it to my husband. It was like a sharp stick in the eye, a wonderful sharp stick.
September 3rd, 2007 at 1:22 pmThanks for your comment, eighmie.
September 3rd, 2007 at 7:35 pmAwesome article… made me want to watch the movie again, and pay more attention to such things.
By the way, did you figure out the twist in the movie before it was revealed?
September 4th, 2007 at 1:42 pmJason: Glad you liked the article. :)
The twist surprised me during my initial viewing, but subsequent viewings have shown me that it was foreshadowed heavily, and I wouldn’t be surprised if some people solved the puzzle more readily.
I also like the way the twist was handled. In many movies, a twist like that is the end of the story, the great revelation, the end to which all means have been building. In Fight Club, the twist wasn’t really the point, and the narrative just kept rolling along even after it was revealed.
September 4th, 2007 at 1:59 pmI actually had it figured out long before it was revealed, but like you said, that didn’t kill the movie… the twist wasn’t the whole point, just something to make it more interesting.
September 4th, 2007 at 2:03 pmJason: Exactly. When I think of movies like Hide and Seek, where the twist is the great revelation, I rarely want to watch the movie again because, well… once you know the secret, there’s not much point.
There are exceptions: The Sixth Sense, for example.
But the beauty of Fight Club is that you can watch it 10 times, and the experience is never lessoned by knowing the secret.
September 4th, 2007 at 2:12 pmPerhaps the finest performance given by either Ed Norton or Brad Pitt, this movie will live on forever in online analysis. Nicely done here. I’ve probably watched this movie a dozen times and I still think there’s more to get it out of it. I usually hate “statement” movies but FC somehow pulled the perfect punch…twist ending or not, the whole thing makes me think about society and life. And plus, Brad Pitt with his shirt off ain’t too bad either.
September 9th, 2007 at 7:44 pmYou’ve got a really great site here - I’m so glad I found you! You’re entertaining and thought provoking. Thanks for doing it!
Thanks for your analysis, Chrissy. I too am glad you found my site.
September 9th, 2007 at 8:49 pmHi John,
what a great idea to turn Tyler Durden’s ramblings into a self-help (sort-of) article! Thank you.
And you’re right: If Tyler existed he would probably hate stuff like this, self-help articles, websites with clever life-knowledge quotes and top 10 lists of need-to-knows and need-to-dos. I sure would love to hear Tyler’s opinion on self-declared gurus like Steve Pavlina or the likes!
Ironically now, as you pointed out, Tyler Durden, fictional or not, cannot help to be a self-help guru himself: He does have a profound (if twisted) insight into human life, into the mistakes we make and the trappings of our modern societies.
Thanks for writing this and adding some thought of your own. That’s rare on the web!
Best regards,
September 14th, 2007 at 12:41 amFincherFanatic
Hey guys
September 14th, 2007 at 10:36 amJust remember
His name was Robert Polsen!
Your Mom: Although I’m quite sure you’re not my mother (unless she’s suddenly changed her taste in movies dramatically), thanks for your comments! :)
Thanks to you too, lordordec.
September 14th, 2007 at 12:18 pmyea, if Tyler were real, he would love to destoy things such as this page. But, in a manner of thinking, he is a self-help guru of sorts. I love the movie and book and I’m always happy to see others who share that with me. good job…sir.
October 17th, 2007 at 9:20 amThank you, RandomReynolds.
October 18th, 2007 at 6:26 pmhi john,
October 23rd, 2007 at 2:54 pmi really liked the maverickness of tyler, the way in which he lets go of things… the movie is essentially about freedom , which has so scarce in our lives….
we have the illusion of free will..but we are really bound by the invisible forces of ettiquete,money & ego..the movie provides a way of making us free ie by destroying everything or losing everything !!
but that is the wrong way..i m searching for the right path that will lead to true freedom.
Rule #1 no one talks about fight club
November 5th, 2007 at 10:33 pmI find it interesting that marla’s character is quite different and not nearly as integral a role in the movie as it is in the book. Is this because the voice of reason shouldn’t exist for hollywood?
Good question, mykal. I’m not sure, but I do know that concessions often have to be made when books are translated into movies due to a variety of factors, including running time, the literal nature of movies, audience tolerance and attention span, etc.
November 7th, 2007 at 12:01 am“Maybe self-improvement isn’t the answer…. Maybe self-destruction is the answer.”
What about ’self-construction’? - building (or rather re-building) yourself piece by piece (metaphorically speaking) to create the ‘you’ you want to be?
Doug
November 28th, 2007 at 2:18 amhttp://www.dougwoods.com
The sad thing is that everyone here has seen the movie, but I doubt very few got it. You may have gotten it from an intellectual standpoint. But if you’re still watching the movie and analyzing it, then you don’t believe it. Quit being so chicken shit to give up all that doesn’t matter and go after your dreams. Stop living in the past, projecting into the future, let go and GO OUT AND FUCKING LIVE YOUR DREAM! Become enlightened!
January 7th, 2008 at 7:42 pmI am Jack’s presumptuous knee-jerk reaction to a blog post.
January 10th, 2008 at 9:04 pmI am joe’s uncontrollable desire to emulate that which I am not.
January 23rd, 2008 at 7:36 pmI am Jack’s confusion. Okay, seriously, I am *John’s* confusion. What the heck are we talking about again? And who in the world is Joe?
January 24th, 2008 at 9:35 pmLike it or not, fiction or not, Guys and Gals, Tyler Durden is now in the collective unconscious, and he’s gonna get what he wants. He’s dangerous to all the things he was against in the movie. Like it or not.
February 21st, 2008 at 1:51 pmOf all the posts I’ve ever written, this one wins the prize for attracting the most consistently bizarre responses…
February 21st, 2008 at 2:29 pmIts quite possible Tyler would be a member of Al Queda! they did do a simlar thing at the end of the movie…..except they cleared out the buildings before they blew them up.
May 5th, 2008 at 1:15 amA girl was keep in chicken house from birth…..she became a chicken. what i trying to say is everything we do or think is all learnt…LEARNT!…and most the people i meet are idioits….so if i learnt everything from idioits i guess im a idioit….RIGHT!!