Fight Club Plot Summary

At the beginning of Fight Club, we are introduced to the main character. We learn all about his life, including his main problem with insomnia, but he remains nameless. He begins going to counseling groups as something to do, and then realizes that when he breaks down and cries, he is able to sleep. He notices that there is this girl who comes to all of the counseling groups that he does, Marla. He knows that she is a faker just like him, and he can't cry when another faker is present. This makes him unable to sleep, and he becomes miserable once again. He works out an agreement with her where they will go to separate groups on separate days. They exchange phone numbers and are on their ways. He works at an important job and appears to have his life all figured out. On a plane on his way home from a business trip, he meets a man named Tyler. Tyler sells soap and gives him his business card. When the main character arrives back to his apartment, he discovers that it has burned down. The only phone number he has is the one on Tyler's business card. He calls Tyler and they go to a bar together to have a drink. When they walk outside Tyler asks him to hit him as hard as he can. After some hesitation, he does it. Something inside of him turns on and they begin to fight. After the fight they are laughing and he begins to stay at Tyler's house. The two start fighting every Saturday night outside of the bar. Eventually, other men start to show up and watch. Everyone seems to be intrigued with this. At Tyler's house, the main character discovers that Marla is sleeping with Tyler. He says that he doesn't mind, but he acts strange whenever she is around. Once there are a large number of men involved in the fighting outside the bar, Tyler decides to pronounce it the "Fight Club". They start meeting in the basement of a building and men can fight every night of the week. There are rules to the club, and the first two are "don't talk about fight club".  Tyler teaches the main character how to make soap, and this starts a business. He has men audition to live in his house and be a part of his soap making business. The Fight Club is now re-named "Project Mayhem". More fight clubs are showing up all over the country. One night, when the main character realizes that he was not informed of the name change, he questions his leadership in the club. Tyler gets angry and purposely gets them into a car accident because he won't tell him what he wants to do before he dies. The next morning, Tyler is gone. The group plans a mission, and one of the members gets shot in the head and killed. This was one of the main character's good friends from his testicular cancer support group. The main character has become just like Tyler, reckless and living every day on the edge, but this event bothers him, and he realizes that they have gone too far. He goes snooping through Tyler's room, and finds ticket stubs to all over the country. He flies to every single one of those places, but misses Tyler every time. He sees many different fight clubs along the way. While he is traveling, people are calling him Tyler. He thinks that they are making a mistake, but everyone he comes across knows him as Tyler. One night, Tyler shows up in his hotel room, and reveals that they are the same person. Tyler is the main characters ideal self, he is everything that he wishes he could be. Now that Tyler realizes they are the same person, he goes out to disconnect all of the bombs that his ideal self has placed in all of the banks. He is unsuccessful, but in the end he watches all of the buildings blow up while he is holding Marla's hand.