Chelmsford

Abstract

Literary Studies with Creative Writing Emphasis

Traditionally, the term deux ex machina refers to the intrusion of a God-like being
into the events of a play: in order to bring about a desired conclusion, the playwright introduces
a supernatural deity who restores order. Witness the statue of Hermione at the
end of A Winter's Tale.

More modem texts call for a broader interpretation. The symbolic rain of frogs at
the end of Paul Thomas Anderson's film Magnolia, or the disappearance of Charles
Lindbergh in Philip Roth's The Plot Against America, qualify as dei ex machina. These
are events created not by a supernatural being, but by the author himself Their intent is
usually to convey some sort of symbolism; the toxic black cloud in Don DeLillo's White
Noise, for example, represents the intrusion of technology-and its side effects-into
modem society.

Date of Award	2011
Original language	American English
Awarding Institution	Eastern Illinois University
Supervisor	Letitia Moffitt (Supervisor)