The 8 rules of Fight Club

It’s not what you said but how you said it, the Voice is an amazing thing, it creates the sounds we make to accompany our words or non-words. We have the ability to express our physical, emotional and attitudinal states just by the tone of our voice. Being able to tap into your own tone of voice and the tone of others gives you the ability to detect how people are thinking and feeling.

   The vocal properties that are used in the clip “The 8 rules of Fight Club” can be controlled and manipulated. Within the first four words that Edward Norton says I was able to pick up on his pitch and volume. With the rising of tone in the beginning of the sentence with the word “Gentlemen” and then the falling of his tone as he continues his sentence with “Welcome to fight club” Since starting his sentence with a slightly higher pitch and then his typical fundamental frequency and raising the intensity on that first word quickly gets everyone’s attention on him.
   Something I noticed Edward Norton using throughout his entire monolog was silent pauses. When stating each rule of fight club to all the members he would say what number rule it was then add a break in speech that carried no sound. These pauses were purposeful; he used this as a tactic to create a dramatic effect in presentation. Using the silent pause has a tendency to make others feel intimidated Edward Norton was leaving the entire crowd on the edge of their seats as the wait for the explanation of the rule.
   When teaching the member of fight club the eight most important rules Edward Norton was accenting specific words. As he gave the second rule “You do not talk about Fight Club” Edward Norton uses the volume of his voice and the rate of his speech to emphasize and draw attention to the first three words “you do not.” That grabs his audience’s full attention and displays the high importance of his intended message
   With Edward Norton’s vocal qualities he has the perfect mixture of raspiness and breathiness that bring his character to life. The throaty quality in his voice worked well in conveying the image of his tough guy persona. The breathiness aspect in his voice showed his characters attitude towards his power as he reported the rules of fight club to the members.
  Throughout Edward Norton’s monologue you can see how we use our voices to produce messages. The qualities that able us to produce vocal nonverbal communication is complex but understanding the messages that are being sent out and how to use our own vocals enhances our communication and ability to interact with others.