2009-08-16

August 16th, 2009 1:06am

The Greek tragedian Euripides is often criticized for his frequent use of the deus ex machina. More than half of Euripides’ extant tragedies employ a deus ex machina in their resolution and some critics go so far as to claim the mekhane was a Euripidean invention. … In Aristophanes’ play Thesmophoriazusae the playwright parodies Euripides’ frequent use of the crane by making Euripides himself a character in the play and bringing him on stage by way of the mekhane.