In medias res

A narrative work beginning in medias res (

Works that employ in medias res often later use flashback and nonlinear narrative for exposition to fill in the backstory. In Homer's Odyssey, the reader first learns about Odysseus's journey when he is held captive on Calypso's island. The reader then finds out, in Books IX through XII, that the greater part of Odysseus's journey precedes that moment in the narrative. In Homer's Iliad there are fewer flashbacks, although it opens in the thick of the Trojan War.

First use of the phrase

The Roman lyric poet and satirist Horace (65–8 BC) first used the terms ab ōvō ("from the egg") and in mediās rēs ("into the middle of things") in his Ars Poetica ("Poetic Arts", c. 13 BC), wherein lines 147–149 describe the ideal epic poet:^[2]

Nor does he begin the Trojan War from the egg, but always he hurries to the action, and snatches the listener into the middle of things. . . .

The word "egg" reference is to the

Modern novelists using in medias res with flashbacks include William Faulkner and Toni Morrison.

Edgar Allan Poe's "The Tell-Tale Heart" is written in medias res.^[10]

Cinematic history

It is typical for film noir to begin in medias res; for example, a private detective will enter the plot already in progress.^[11] Crossfire (1947) opens with the murder of Joseph Samuels. As the police investigate the crime, the story behind the murder is told via flashbacks.^[12] Dead Reckoning (1947) opens with Humphrey Bogart as Rip Murdock on the run and attempting to hide in a Catholic church. Inside, the backstory is told in flashback as Murdock explains his situation to a priest.^[12]

The technique has been used across genres, including dramas such as

Superhero films with a satirical edge such as Deadpool (2016) and Birds of Prey (2020) have utilized in medias res to frame their stories.^[21]

Animated films such as Grave of the Fireflies (1988), The Emperor's New Groove (2000), Hoodwinked! (2005), Happily N'Ever After (2006), Megamind (2010), and The Mitchells vs. the Machines (2021) have opening scenes in medias res, with a brief but significant scene that foreshadows the events that occurred earlier. This scene is then seen again afterwards (although in a different way than how it was shown at the beginning). Another animated film, The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), starts in medias res with supporting character Clopin Trouillefou

telling the story to a group of children some time after the events of the film.

Many

war films, such as The Thin Red Line (1998), also begin in medias res, with the protagonists already actively in combat and no prior domestic scenes leading up to the film's events.^[22]

See also

• Cold open
• Flashforward
• Reverse chronology

References

1. ^ "In medias res". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved July 31, 2013.
2. ^ Horace. Ars poetica (in Latin). nec gemino bellum Troianum orditur ab ovo; / semper ad eventum festinat et in medias res / [...] auditorem rapit
3. ^
   ISBN 1-57958-422-5
4. ISBN 90-04-09530-6
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5. ISBN 0-7641-9107-1
6. ISBN 978-0226702704
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7. S2CID 166420522
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8. JSTOR 3513451
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9. ISBN 9781317565437
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10. ISBN 9781527506985
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11. ISBN 978-0-8131-9181-2
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12. ^ ^{a b} Mayer, Geoff; McDonnell, Brian (2007). Encyclopedia of Film Noir. ABC-CLIO. pp. 146, 161.
    ISBN 978-0-313-33306-4
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13. ^
    ISBN 978-0-8038-6773-4
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14. ^ "What is the term, In Medias Res?". Archived from the original on 2017-11-07. Retrieved 2011-11-01.
15. ISBN 978-0-521-38768-2
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16. ^
    ISBN 978-0-230-22330-1
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17. ISBN 978-962-209-056-9
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18. ISBN 978-0-7864-2821-2
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19. ISBN 978-0-7486-1288-8
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20. ISBN 978-0-7425-5547-1. Retrieved July 25, 2020 – via Google Books
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21. ^ "Film Review: Deadpool". Red Fence. 30 May 2016.
22. ISBN 978-0-7864-3827-3
    .

External links

• The dictionary definition of in medias res at Wiktionary

Look up in, medias, or res in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.