English Faculty Publications
Title
To Live Like Fighting Cocks: 'Fight Club' and the Ethics of Masculinity
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2011
Publication Source
Quarterly Review of Film and Video
Abstract
David Fincher's 1999 adaptation of Chuck Palahniuk's novel Fight Club has prompted many academics to write about this film and has captivated many of their students. As Warren Rosenberg, chair of English at the all-male Wabash College has said, "This seems to be a movie that they all adore so we'll see if we can deconstruct it, and hopefully get them to like it less" (Students, A10). While we may take this flippant comment from a 2001 story in The Chronicle of Higher Education as just that and dismiss it as quickly as it passes, Rosenberg's sentiment reflects a widespread academic propensity to dismiss and disparage the film and convince students that the film does not merit the critical attention.
Also writing in The Chronicle, Steve Vineman dismisses the film as "too badly put together to support an analytical study" (Preposterous B13) and turns down his students who want to write their final papers on it.
Inclusive pages
230-238
ISBN/ISSN
1050-9208
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Volume
28
Issue
3
Peer Reviewed
yes
eCommons Citation
Slade, Andrew, "To Live Like Fighting Cocks: 'Fight Club' and the Ethics of Masculinity" (2011). English Faculty Publications. 39.
https://ecommons.udayton.edu/eng_fac_pub/39
COinS
