Why was Marla's life in danger according to The Narrator?
In the film Fight Club, What I understood so far is that The Narrator thinks Marla's life in danger because Tyler wants to kill her.
In the scene where The Narrator realizes he's also Tyler and they have a discussion, Tyler says "Now you see our dilemma, she know too much.". And I get that Tyler didn't want The Narrator to realize they were the same person (and so not to talk about Tyler to Marla) because The Narrator didn't have the balls to do on his own what Tyler did.
But how is Marla compromising any plans at that point of the movie ?
The Narrator already understood he's Tyler so what is there that Marla could ruin ?
Best Answer
Even though Tyler is part of the Narrator, that part (which we call Tyler) has an agenda, which we see represented as Tyler's proactive "teaching" of the Narrator. You've touched on this in your question:
Tyler didn't want The Narrator to realize they were the same person because The Narrator didn't have the balls to do on his own what Tyler did.
If Tyler didn't want the Narrator to be aware of the split personalities, why on Earth would he trust Marla with that same knowledge, which gives her the power to ruin Tyler's agenda?
Note: your question seems to imply that the Narrator's realization (about Tyler) is the biggest problem for Tyler. It is not. It is a problem, but there is a threat of something much more dangerous to Tyler: a psychiatric hospital and anti-psychotic meds. The Narrator's knowledge about Tyler is only an obstacle (to Tyler's teachings), but the hospital and meds will drive Tyler out completely.
Marla being aware of Tyler being the Narrator (or vice versa, I guess) means that she's in a unique position. The guys in the club generally think of the Narrator as a guy with some serious balls (= Tyler), but they don't realize that it's a matter of split personalities.
As such, Marla is the only one who can really pull the emergency brake, call in a psychiatrist, and put an end to Tyler's agenda. This is why she's a threat to Tyler.
And there's a great duality here, because before the Narrator realizes he is Tyler, he interprets Tyler's words differently.
- Pre-realization, he can interpret Tyler's words as Marla being dangerous because she knows too much about the fight club and its dealings.
- Post-realization, we now know that Tyler thinks of Marla as a threat, because she can put a stop to the psychological manifestation that is Tyler (or at least his agenda).
edit
Just a realization. Tyler seeing Marla as a threat indirectly confirms that Tyler knows he's inside the Narrator's head, even though the Narrator himself is not initially aware of it.
Pictures about "Why was Marla's life in danger according to The Narrator?"
What happens when the narrator attempts to end fight club and cancel Project Mayhem?
He attempts to put a stop to Project Mayhem and cancel fight club. He is unsuccessful, and the whole thing is out of his control. He knows the only way to stop all of it is to get rid of Tyler. The narrator arrives at work to find that the building is blown up, and his boss is dead.Why is Marla important in fight club?
Summing up, Marla is the main woman who joins the company of the narrator and keeps both Tyler and narrator related to the rest of the world. As well as other characters, she is self-centered and strange to the world where she lives. It is the reason why she finds her new friends appropriate for her.What does the narrator want from Tyler and Marla?
The Narrator wants to be with Marla, but doesn't feel she would accept him as he is. She reminds him so much of himself, but she is honest in how she presents herself. To shield himself from his own lack of self-esteem, the Narrator creates Tyler, his own idea of the perfect man, so that he can be with her.Did the narrator sleep in fight club?
When the narrator was in the presence of another faker, he couldn't let go, he couldn't cry, and so he couldn't sleep. Marla was a constant reminder, he was a fake as well. He tried to explain how essential these support group meetings were to him, but she didn't care. Marla faces her problems in a very head on way.FIGHT CLUB: Why is Marla Singer important in Fight Club?
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Erik Mclean, Lachlan Ross, 현덕 김, Enric Cruz López