Deus ex machina (DEM) is a contrivance, an unexpected event, that brings a narrative plot to its conclusion; the question is, are the murder of Floyd Barton, the terminal cancer of Carolyn Carmichael, and the revelation of Jessup Dolly's demise all examples of this device? It may be necessary to examine each of these dramatic works with laser-like precision to determine the appropriate answer to this query.
First, let us consider the murder of blues man Floyd Barton, the arguable protagonist of August Wilson's ensemble piece Seven Guitars. Seven Guitars is one of ten installments in Wilson's Century Cycle, each work representing the Black experience in a particular decade of the twentieth century. Barton is a dreamer and a victim of the predatory music industry. He will do anything to get back on top and relive his past glory of having a hit record. The thing is, just when things are looking up, Floyd has a meeting scheduled with his 'manager' who is going to get his guitar out of hock, "The same one Muddy Waters play," and stake his passage/train fare from Pittsburgh to Chicago, the manager gets pinched for selling phony insurance. Desperate to win back the affection of his former lover Vera and get back on the path to stardom, Floyd participates in a daylight robbery that ends in the death of his accomplice and leaves Floyd with a tidy sum. Floyd's bandmate/harmonica player Canewell stumbles onto Floyd's ill-gotten gains and tensions flare. Tragedy is temporarily averted when Canewell backs down while in the sights of Floyd's .38 caliber pistol; however, this reprieve is both fleeting and momentary as a the TB ravaged Haitian Hedley who has been drinking 'moonshine' no less finds both his courage and his machete. The question is, is Barton's murder unexpected or a foregone conclusion as the play opens with the chorus of characters reflecting on his funeral? I would argue that although Hedley being the character to carry out the murder may be unexpected, Barton's death is no mere contrivance and therefore not an example of DEM.
By way of contrast, the untimely demise of Carolyn Carmichael (Alfre Woodard), the matriarch in Spike Lee's bildungsroman Crooklyn from 1994, is both necessary and unexpected. Troy, expertly played by the young Zelda Harris, needs to suffer the loss of her mother in order to complete her maturation and grow wise beyond her ten years. One of the reasons Carolyn's illness may blindside audiences is the way it runs contrary to the overall sunny mood and lighthearted tone of the film. If one were to divide the film into three or four acts, the natural segmentation of this episodic narrative would be the ensemble feel of the introduction, act two beginning with Troy's visit with relatives 'down South,' act three Carolyn's sickness and death, and the resolution of Troy hesitatingly attending her mother's funeral, reconciling with her older brother/former nemesis Clinton and taking care of her youngest brother Richard by running off Snuffy (Spike Lee) and 'Right Hand', combing out his hair, and looking after the house and home. I would argue that the seeming abruptness of Carolyn's illness and passing make this turn of events an example of DEM.
Finally, the conclusion and
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