Deus ex machina

So you've likely read a lot of books where there is a dues ex machina event. It's something of a sliding scale of "there are impossible odds but the protagonist still makes it through it" to "God comes in and removes the obstacle instantly".

Where is it that you think that it is ever used appropriately or not appropriately?

Deus ex Machina, by definition, cannot be used well. However, it's also a more limited concept then many people seem to think it is (of course, since that's "plot twist I disliked", that's not saying much).

Excel Saga seems to prove otherwise. But then again...

A Parodied Trope is not really a use of the trope, at least in my opinion (though a lampshaded trope - despite what a lot of people seem to think - often is).

"Deus ex Machina, by definition, cannot be used well."

False. It can be used well, it's just really tough to pull off, and seldom is used well.

No. It's by definition a bad trope; if used well, it's not a Deus ex Machina.

There are times when I really wish we had decided to call our "don't try and argue away your favorite show's use of Trope X" page something besides Tropes Are Not Bad.

Edit: To clarify that, I should say that it's not a cripplingly bad trope, and doesn't automatically ruin a story. I like a fair few of the examples on the page (and by that I mean some of the works that actually are examples instead of the aforementioned misuse/complaining). But it's never necessary, and never helps a work. I'd call that "inherently bad".

edited 31st Jul '12 2:33:11 AM by nrjxll

If I remember correctly from my theater history class (and that's a big if), back in ancient Greece the use of gods to solve the plot's problems was almost expected in plays. I guess you could chalk that up to cultural differences and perceptions, but I'd wager they weren't complaining too often in their cases. So I guess the key word here is "expectations" — if there's some way (not sure how, but some way) to at least hint that the event will happen, or — as the Playing With page suggests — the Deus ex Machina plays a bigger role later, then I'm more likely to forgive them.

That said, I think I'll side with nrjxll on this one. I'm not going to say a Deus ex Machina is automatically bad, and I'm not going to say that it can't be pulled off well. My problem is this: if it comes to a point where you have to use a Deus ex Machina to save the day, then you've likely made a misstep in making your story. Characters who resolve stories with their own power (or intelligence, or motivation, or whatever) are more compelling than those that don't, at least to me. But seeing them win requires planning beforehand; they need to earn their victories thanks to the writer's underlying scheme for the story, and handing a win to them by way of the writer's pen is a surefire way to invoke plenty of backlash on the internet.

So when nrjxll says "it's never necessary, and never helps a work" I'm inclined to agree. Why write yourself out of a corner when you can write your way around it long beforehand?

I will say that there's probably a certain element of semantics involved here; what the OP refers to as "appropriate" uses of Deus ex Machina are things I wouldn't call Deus Ex Machinas at all, but they probably are the same thing.

How about what I would personally consider milder forms of "deus ex machina" which are anything from convenient reinforcements or "godly" assistance but not outright winning a scenario for a character. Or deus ex machine for side plots but not the main plot.

To put down some specifics instead of the generalities I've been throwing around, I think there's basically three or four cases where you can use something Deus ex Machina-like without it actually being one (from my perspective; other people might consider this an "acceptable" use of Deus ex Machina instead).

1. Thematic purpose - basically, this is the thing where, in a story that has some sort of faith/religious themes, the protagonist is saved by implicit or explicit literal divine intervention. Can overlap with Rule of Symbolism, but doesn't always.
2. Establishing moment - when a character, newly or fairly newly introduced, displays some previously unseen ability that gets the protagonist out of a jam, which is then established as a regular part of their repertoire. Authors don't (and shouldn't) always reveal everything about a character at their introduction, and this sort of thing can be an effective way for revealing some of that other information.
3. Making the "Deus ex Machina" a main focus of the plot. Basically, this is where you introduce some unexpected ability or event to resolve a subplot, and then making out solving where it came from/what caused it an important part of the ongoing main plot.
4. Unpredictability. Sure, you could have foreshadowed that The Cavalry were on their way, but then the readers (or at least the Genre Savvy ones) wouldn't have been in nearly as much suspense. This is the one that has the easiest possibility of turning into a "real" Deus ex Machina, and I don't really recommend it, but there are times when it can be effective.

Now, I'm not saying that any of these are good ideas; even when pulled off without becoming an actual Deus ex Machina (which is difficult in its own right), they can easily cause an anticlimax. The best way to handle it is to make sure that you plan it out in advance, rather then have it be the result of improvising when you write yourself into a corner. It's also a good idea to never use any of these (except possibly 1) as a final plot resolution.

edited 31st Jul '12 6:27:36 PM by nrjxll

Trying to think of examples of good deus ex machina like situations, the one that comes to mind is more of the "hold out for reinforcements" situation. I mean, what do we count Gandalf coming to the rescue at Helm's Deep as? Is that deus ex machina? We knew he was trying to gather reinforcements yet at the same time, it seemed hopeless since there was not enough cavalry. Then the Ents came in.

A lot of times, I find the minor assistance type of deus ex machine to be fairly acceptable. For instance, the protagonists are set up in an impossible situation but a miracle occurs that gives them an opportunity to win. And it's still just that, an opportunity, and so the protagonists still must move forward to have victory.

That's just outright not a Deus ex Machina, at least in the movie (I would have to check with the book to see whether it had established yet that the Ents were on the march or not - though either way, they didn't really turn the tide and wouldn't count regardless). A look at the four categories on the page easily shows that anything where the plot-resolving element has been foreshadowed, unless in a completely tangential way to how it's used, is not a Deus ex Machina.

edited 1st Aug '12 6:16:57 PM by nrjxll

Oh, I am using the book rather than the movie. I'm rather disappointed that the default is the movie these days. The Ents just sorta came out of nowhere and then slaughtered all the orcs.

Are we defining Deus Ex Machina as everything that we felt didn't work well? Because that seems to be like what we are doing.

The orcs were already in retreat either way, so it still doesn't count (and it's not that the movie is my "default" so much as that it's easier to keep track of its chronology).

As I've said, in my view Deus ex Machina is an inherently negative idea, so I actually am defining what does and doesn't count as one, at least in part, on whether it worked. However, that's a subset of a specific type of plot twist, not "any plot twist I didn't like", which far too many people use it as.

Basically, a "Deus ex Machina" is any plot-resolving event or element that was not foreshadowed or otherwise indicated to exist before it happened. Not every use of this is necessarily bad, so in my book, not every use of a "Deus ex Machina" is actually a Deus ex Machina.

edited 1st Aug '12 6:32:02 PM by nrjxll

Personally, I feel the use of a Deus ex Machina should only be used in conjunction with Chekhov's Gun or possibly if a God or Goddess really does exist within the story's setting.

edited 1st Aug '12 6:38:54 PM by SpellcraftQuill

Isn't a Deus ex Machina nullified if you foreshadow it or use a Chekhov's Gun?

Yeah, if you use chekhov's gun it isn't a deus ex machina. The deus ex machina comes completely out of nowhere, and I can't think of any way it could really be used well. If anyone disagrees, specific examples of well-written deus ex machinas (?) would be nice.

@nrjxll,

Tropes Are Not Bad

Unless they are on the Bad Writing Index.

Then, yeah, they're probably actually bad. (Deus ex Machina is, by the way.)

edited 1st Aug '12 11:18:30 PM by Night

amusingly that article says...:

"Not even those tropes"

edited 1st Aug '12 11:25:35 PM by FallenLegend

Heck, some tropes aren't just bad, they're morally repugnant. (I'd pothole to any of the "Rape Is Okay When..." tropes here, but I'm not sure if they survived the purge).

edited 2nd Aug '12 2:52:17 AM by nrjxll

Not by those names, at least.

Not in English it doesn't. At least not that I see anywhere.

edited 2nd Aug '12 3:21:54 AM by Night

They're still there, but their names are changed.

I'd like to say that the ending of Small Gods pulled off deus ex machina well (using a literal god, too!), but since it was foreshadowed from page one, it was really a Chekhov's Gun.

edited 2nd Aug '12 5:04:42 AM by DoktorvonEurotrash

Actually there's nothing in the definition that states that this is necessarily a bad plot device.

Now this is where things become complicated because it technically is, if you understand the surface of the concept of audience rewarding, wherein the audience needs to feel rewarded for following the story right to the end. In order for this feeling to be achieved there are a lot of common techniques. The most common one is having a confrontation of some kind and have the character literally earn the right to be seen as a hero by having him perform the last heroic deed we'll see him perform (After all, it's normally the last thing we see what define our impressions of an object or person)

But common does not mean necessary. Not all stories have to end with a confrontation. A story can end with the character preparing to confront whatever he's going to confront, for example. In these stories, the reward can come from seeing the character becoming someone who can win, normally. Or at least seeing a display of bravery, but I digress.

The point here is that Deus ex Machina's an uncommon plot device and one that you will barely see these days because it's often seen as tacky by pop-culture-literature-analysts who don't understand that there's not a surefire way for a story to work or not work. There are some elements that don't jive with each other and even then a skilled writer can make them work as well as some elements that always synergize but a bad writer simply can't make them work.

To touch on the stuff I mentioned previously, as an ending doesn't have to be a confrontation or even a satisfying confrontation then the ending can be many things. Take Madoka for example. The show basically ends with Madoka suddenly being able to wish all the problems she faced away. But that's not what's rewarding about it. What's rewarding about it is seeing all the characters' getting closure regarding their character arcs as well as seeing that Madoka made the choice that the whole show's about.

@night read the Tropes Are Tools article the article says it not me