6 definitions found

deus ex machina n 1: any active agent who appears unexpectedly to solve an insoluble difficulty

deus ex machina 1697, from Mod.L. translation of Gk. theos ek mekhanes, lit. "the god from the machina," the device by which "gods" were suspended over the stage in Gk. theater (see machine). The fem. is dea ex machina.

deus ex machina noun Etymology: New Latin, a god from a machine, translation of Greek theos ek mēchanēs Date: 1697 1. a god introduced by means of a crane in ancient Greek and Roman drama to decide the final outcome 2. a person or thing (as in fiction or drama) that appears or is introduced suddenly and unexpectedly and provides a contrived solution to an apparently insoluble difficulty

deus ex machina
n. an unexpected power or event saving a seemingly hopeless situation, esp. in a play or novel.
Etymology: mod.L transl. of Gk theos ek mekhanes, = god from the machinery (by which in the Greek theatre the gods were suspended above the stage)

deus ex machina n. an unexpected power or event saving a seemingly hopeless situation, esp. in a play or novel. [mod.L transl. of Gk theos ek mekhanes, = god from the machinery (by which in the Greek theatre the gods were suspended above the stage)]

Deus ex machina the introduction in high matters of a merely external, material, or mechanical explanation instead of an internal, rational, or spiritual one, which is all a theologian does when he simply names God, and all a scientist does when he simply says Evolution (q. v.).