The Delusion of Deus Ex Machina

Deep down, we all want to win the lottery. We want to be the millionth customer at our local grocery store and win a free car. We want to withdraw $20 from the ATM, but instead, $2000 comes out. We want to wake up tomorrow and be fitter, wealthier, more attractive, and smarter. Rarely do these things happen.

Sometimes we may rely a little too heavily on Deus Ex Machina. What is Deus Ex Machina you may ask? Deus Ex Machina is a plot element where a seemingly unsolvable situation is solved in a very improbable way. Deus Ex Machina roughly translates to “god from the machine”

Deus Ex Machina is a fairytale that does not exist in the real world. The world doesn’t work out all neat and pretty where our problems are solved in an instant by a sudden windfall (except for these people). We aren’t going to get saved. For many things in life, we are on our own. Our problems are solved by Homo Ex Machina (man from the machine). We solve our problems by doing the work that solves them (complicated, right?).

It’s liberating to know that we are responsible for our own lives and that our decisions determine the trajectory of our lives. The world is not coming to save us; only we can save us.