Distorted Reflections: Identity and the Fact/Fiction Divide in Chuck Palahniuk’s<em> Fight Club 2</em> (2015)

Graphic biographical fiction often blurs the lines between fact and fiction, which renders it a powerful medium for exploring the fluidity of identity. Chuck Palahniuk’s Fight Club 2 (2015), the graphic novel sequel to Fight Club (1996), which features the author himself as a character within his story brings forth complex questions regarding self-representation, identity, and the author’s legacy. Drawing on theories of graphic and literary narratology and, identity, this article discusses identity as well as how the genre’s blend of image and text uniquely challenges readers to reconsider the separation between an author’s fictionalized persona and his “true” self as well as the implications of fictionalized self-portrayal in the realm of graphic biographical fiction.