Go Back to Educating Rita - Discuss How Rita Changes Though the Play by Essay

Discuss how Rita changes though the play concentrating on before and after summer school in particular

Educating Rita was written in 1985 by Willy Russell. The story is set in one place at a university in the north of England.

Rita and Frank are the Main two characters we see in this play though we hear of many more such as Rita's flatmate Trish who attempts to commit suicide.

Rita is a twenty-six year old working class hairdresser who has made the scary decision of taking a literary course with the open university this means that she had to brake away from the restrictions and the expectations imposed on her by her husband (who wants her to have a baby), family and the community in which she lives and works. Rita has always wanted to be come more educated and culturally aware she calls it "finding herself."

Throughout the play Rita becomes more and more absorbed in the joys of culture and literature she visits a theatre to see Shakespeare Macbeth and really enjoys it in fact she enjoys it so much she has to tell Frank she also gives up her job as a hairdresser to work in a bistro. Its only after her flatmate Trish attempts to commit suicide that she realises that art and literature don't hold all the answers, but she decides to stay on as Franks student and do her exams.

Rita goes though a lot of changes during her time with Frank but one of the most visible and dramatic change is when she arrives back from summer school.

When we first meet Rita she is launched straight into a conversation about a door handle than needs to be fixed her body language and the way she moves around on the stage suggests she hasn't had much experience of the uppercases social standards before and also by cling the picture on franks wall "erotic" she is displaying that se doesn't think about what she says

Soon after the entrance of Rita into the play the conversation s moved on too swearing "Ill say something like, oh, im really fucked, y' know, dead loud. It doesn't half cause a fuss." She moves on to talk more about the upper classes swearing "its all pass me the fakin' grouse' with them isn't it" this again shows she has little knowledge of the upper class because the upper-class rarely ever swear out of context.

Before she goes to summer school She can't relate to her husband or friends anymore so she calls herself a "half cast", this shows that she doesn't know where she belongs any more, she doesn't fit in with her friends and family any more and she don't peel educated enough to fit in with the upper class. She asks Deny her husband to go to the theatre with her but he wants to go to the "beer keg." She goes to see Macbeth by herself, then rushes to tell Frank, "you'll never guess what. I went to the theatre." She is like a little child that wants praise for painting a pretty picture or getting a good report at school.

Frank invites Rita to go to a party at his house, "I couldn't go in." She doesn't have the confidence to go in because she thinks they would all laugh at her as if she was the "court jester" this is another example of how she feels like a "half cast" and is not confidant enough to fit in with the upper class yet. She goes to the pub and sees her mother crying and saying, "We can sing better songs than those." That is why Rita is carrying on with the course.

Deny gives Rita two options, "He said either I stop comin' hear an' come off the pill or I could get out all together." She leaves Deny, which shows her determination to become something. "I got home and he'd packed me case." This is the first decision that has changed Rita's life. Even though she is upset she wants to carry on discussing her essay with Frank, "let's continue." This shows she is becoming a stronger person and wants to forget about Denny and become what she wants nothing is going to stand in her way now.

After the crisis Rita becomes stronger and more confident. She is forced to take on a new life. Before Rita goes to summer school she says, "I wish you were gonna be there Frank", it is like she has fallen for him and also she wants to be told its ok and she will do just fine.

When Rita returns from summer school Frank is in his office he is impatient "Frank is sitting at his desk typing out poetry. He pauses, stubs out a cigarette, takes a sip from the mug at his side, looks at his watch and then continues typing." Its like he is trying to avoid looking anxious when Rita arrives like he wants to hide his feelings from her.

When Rita enters the scene the use of the word "bursts" in the stage directions shows a contrast is her and Franks approaches of seeing each other for the first time after the trip to London Frank trying to act cool and casual like he hasn't missed her were as Rita on the other had is acting like a child when she sees Frank for the first time "she twirls on the spot to show off her new clothes" she is fishing for complements and gets them "and what is this vision returning from the city" Frank has used sarcasm to hide a very flattering complement because he doesn't want to show his true feelings.

Rita enjoyed herself so much she can't express it in words "Honest, it was - ogh!"

She describes summer school to Frank and some of the more interesting points where she held back her usual sarcastic or stupid comments and actually used and understood the language that she has wanted for most of her life "it was right on the tip of me tongue to say only when its served with parmesan cheese but I didn't Frank I held it back and I actually heard myself saying im not to familiar with the American poets." Another example is when she stands up in the lecture hall to ask her first question then states after being asked what the question was "Oh, I duno, I forgot now cos after that I was askin questions all week, y' couldn't keep me down. I think that first question was about Chekhov; cos y' know im ded familiar with Chekhov now."

Another example of how she ha changed is when Frank offers her a cigarette and she declines saying, "No, Ta, I've packed it in" this show she must have had a big think about her life while she was away and decided smoking was not part of the person she wanted to be.

Later Rita is starting to make her own choices and doesn't tell Frank everything she has learned a lot and is using it in everyday life Rita has made a comparison between a room and a plant and Frank has decided to take to the nth degree saying "lets get a watering can" Rita uses her knowledge to argue back "well any analogy will brake down eventually."

Rita shows her interest in literature to Frank when she recites form memory one of Blake's poems "O' Rose, thou art sick."

After summer school Rita is more determined to change than ever to become more independent to become "more like Trish" and in this way he decides to change an influence part of herself her voice "nothing is wrong with it, Frank, I have mealy decided to talk properly. As Trish says there is not a lot of point discussing beautiful literature with an ugly voice."

After summer school Rita isn't so much or a "half cast" anymore she talks to students on the lawn and fits in with the part of sosity that she so desperately wants to fit in with "yeh I got here early today ands started talking to the students on the lawn"

Her tastes in reading have changed from pulp fiction "ruby fruit jungle" to real literature "sons and lovers."

Rita has become more confidant discussing literature and putting forward here won view point she feels she has the knowledge to argue back "bit its like the poem about the rose it becomes more rewarding when you se it works on a number of levels" and "me and some others were talking about Blake"

Frank is starting to realise that Rita is starting to be influenced by others not using her views but the views of others in her writing "and your views I still value but Rita, these aren't your views"

At the point were Rita admits to Frank and herself she has change she has achieved her goals what she set out do. She is more educated and knows the right books to read the right wine to buy. "Tch I-I care for you, Frank... but you've got to-to leave me alone a bit. Im not an idiot now, Frank - I don't need you to hold my hands as much ... I can-I can do things on me own more now ... and im careful. I know what in doing'. Just don't- don't keep treating me as though im the same as when I first walked in here. I understand now, Frank; I know the difference between- summerset Morgan and, Harold robins. And you're still treating me as though in still hung up on ruby fruit jungle. ... You understand, don't you Frank"" by using the comparison between two different books she's taking the conversation to a level where frank will understand.

At this point I think Frank fully realises the extent of Rita's change from a blonde uneducated bimbo who wore old dresses told him every little detail about her life and worked in a hairdressers shop and didn't know what wine to buy what books to read to a person who is clever educated person who knows what wine to buy what books to read and doesn't tell him anything anymore he didn't even know she had changed jobs to work in a bistro "when you were late I phone the shop the hairdressers shop we're you work ore should I have said worked"

After summer school Rita has changed allot and doesn't need anyone anymore she's content with where she is at the moment I think this is because the people at summer school gave her a boost in knowledge and confidence in what she can do not what frank can teach her which helped her stick in and complete the coarse but Frank needs her its like role reversal at the beginning Rita needed Frank and Frank was independent now Rita doesn't need anyone anymore but Frank is so desperately longing for Rita the time spent apart when Rita was at the summer school gave him a chance to think about things and more importantly think about Rita about how he needed to change her to make her pass the exams but I don't think he wanted to change her this influenced the role reversal a lot because it made him insecure while Rita was growing in stature an knowledge.