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Post by I own a cylinder on Mar 18, 2005 9:24:57 GMT
No, I haven't posted a comment about the Matrix and its big porkipine god machine. A Deus Ex Machina ending, is something dating back to Greek theatre when they used to do the whole intervention of the Gods to resolve a crisis. They used to fly actors around. Which is why its called 'God in the Machine.' Now a days its seen as a bit of cop out or bad writing on the part of the writer to bring an end to something which he couldn't do on his own using something he introduces into the text out of the blue. Now thats got me thinking. Does anyone else think that the ending to War of the Worlds is a Deus Ex Machina ending in that Wells kills off the martians suddenly using the bacteria to which there has only been little mention previously but not indication of its work. I know that there is good significance in Wells overthrowing the martians with the smallest thing, but it just seems that when the war reached fever pitch, i.e. when things were most terrible they are suddenly removed without prior notice. See what i'm saying, lol
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Post by EvilNerfherder on Mar 18, 2005 17:22:50 GMT
Ermm.. sort of. Although the literal usage of that phrase wouldn't fit as I doubt some sort of religious intervention was what Wells was implying in the novel. Which is where it differs from the '53 movie. Wells was reinforcing his points about our complacency by using the most humble forms of life on Earth as our saviours, I think. This usage seems to be as far from religion as you can get for me. Although, of course, you could say that God sent the bacteria to save us, etc.. You can look at it lots of different ways.
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Post by lanceradvanced on Mar 18, 2005 17:51:23 GMT
Now thats got me thinking. Does anyone else think that the ending to War of the Worlds is a Deus Ex Machina ending in that Wells kills off the martians suddenly using the bacteria to which there has only been little mention previously but not indication of its work. I'd lean against it being called a Ex Machina ending, because it's the entire point of the book... the whole the mighest fall to the littlest.things spiel.. The other thing is that a ExMachina ending is rarely explained to the length that Wells takes in WOTW...
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Post by McTodd on Mar 18, 2005 21:04:37 GMT
I'd lean against it being called a Ex Machina ending, because it's the entire point of the book... the whole the mighest fall to the littlest.things spiel.. The other thing is that a ExMachina ending is rarely explained to the length that Wells takes in WOTW... Absolutely, the deus ex machina tends to be a desperate resort by a writer who has run out of ideas (knowing almost nothing about ancient Greek drama, I would hazard the guess that it was different in their case, that presumably they were making some comment about the power or capriciousness of the Gods or something). But you're right when you say that for Wells it's one of the biggest elements of the whole book, it's absolutely integral. Not only is there the fact that humankind has been powerless to affect its own fate, but the irony of it being the most unregarded little things that have done the saving - now there's a knock to our pride! In any case, Wells does drop a hint or two here and there beforehand, so it isn't straight out of the blue (as a true deus ex machina would be) - it is entirely logical.
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Post by I own a cylinder on Mar 19, 2005 12:09:41 GMT
In any case, Wells does drop a hint or two here and there beforehand, so it isn't straight out of the blue (as a true deus ex machina would be) - it is entirely logical. Yeah. i randomly re read parts of the book and did find points of reference. Specifically in the deteriation of the Red Weed.
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Post by McTodd on Mar 19, 2005 13:09:41 GMT
There's a subtle, but pervasive, sense of decay as the novel moves on (one could say it's a bit of a leitmotif, but one would be a bit of a ponce if one did so, so one won't...).
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Post by Lensman on Mar 24, 2005 5:27:59 GMT
"Deux ex machina" actually means "god *from* machine", referring to early stage plays where an actor playing the part of a Greek god would be lowered on a mechanized trapeze, a "machine," into the stage where the character would resolve all the mortals' problems by divine fiat.
Yes, WotW does fit the definition of deux ex machina, because the humans are not able to resist the Martians; rather, it's Divine Providence that saves humanity. That is, it's Divine Providence if you choose to interpret it that way, and certainly that's the way Wells wrote the epilogue with its hosannas praising Divine Providence.
But remember, the epilogue was tacked on later. You can ignore that and consider Wells' original ending, with the Martians' hubris bringing them low, in which case it's not exactly a Deux Ex Machina ending. But one can still criticize it for not following the proper form of storytelling. In storytelling, characters should *earn* their fate. The humans in WotW come off very poorly; instead of bravely resisting the Martians they panic and run. They therefore don't *deserve* to be saved.
Whether or not the undeserved ending is a weakness in the novel is of course a matter of opinion. The fact is that Wells was paralleling the destruction of the Tasmanian native culture by the British in their empire-building. And of course, no Divine Providence or anything else saved the Tasmanians; their nation and culture were destroyed.
My personal opinion is that the novel is better for the ironic ending of the most primitive of earthly creatures bringing down the advanced Martians. But then, I'm a sucker for a happy ending.
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