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- Throughout the play, though, Rita wants to shift away from this identity as a young working-class woman. To do this, she reads the books Frank gives her, makes fundamental changes to her personal life, and tries to secure an education that will enable her to transition away from her blue-collar background.
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Rita comes to want more than an education; she wants to get out of her working-class background completely. This is what drives her and Denny apart, as they are no longer part of the same class and he knows it, considering it a “betrayal”.
- Irony
Educating Rita study guide contains a biography of Willy...
- Imagery
Rita in the pub. This is an important image: Rita in a...
- Essay Questions
However, Rita does not want to engage with Frank...
- Irony
Throughout the play, though, Rita wants to shift away from this identity as a young working-class woman. To do this, she reads the books Frank gives her, makes fundamental changes to her personal life, and tries to secure an education that will enable her to transition away from her blue-collar background.
Willy Russell. Upgrade to A +. Intro. Plot. Summary & Analysis. Themes. Quotes. Characters. Symbols. Theme Viz. Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on Educating Rita makes teaching easy. Ask LitCharts AI: The answer to your questions. Get instant explanations to your questions about anything we cover. Powered by LitCharts content and AI.
Frank. A twenty-six-year-old hairdresser who signs up for tutoring lessons with Frank, a professor at a nearby university. Rita is fiercely intelligent but has little in the way of a formal education.
- Rita
- Frank
- Denny
Rita's first name is actually Susan. She calls herself "Rita" as an homage to Rita Mae Brown, author of her favorite novel, Rubyfruit Jungle. When Rita first arrives for tutoring with Frank, her academic potential (despite her lack of refinement) is immediately apparent to him. Although he is intimidated by the idea of teaching her, she likes him i...
Frank, who is in his early 50s, is a tenured professor. He has agreed to tutor to make some extra money "to pay for the drink" in which he frequently indulges. He is bored and dissatisfied with his life, questioning the value of being an "appalling" teacher to "appalling" students. When he meets Rita, he is immediately both smitten with her and con...
Although never seen onstage, Denny symbolizes the stifling subculture in which Rita is trapped. His opposition to her continued education is presented as typical of Rita's social class. He wants what people of his class are supposed to want—a wife, a family, a decent job, and nights out at the pub. Rita's desire for more threatens him, as does his ...
Apr 2, 2021 · Sarah McLaughlin. 2nd April 2021. Willy Russell’s (1981) play Educating Rita presents a biography of Rita – a white working class woman who returns to education as a mature student and faces conflict with her sense of self as she embarks upon a journey of self-discovery and erudition.
Rita’s growth of confidence is directly linked to her education, as well as a result of her innate and indefatigable desire to evolve and improve. “See if I’d started takin’ school seriously then I would have had to become different from my mates; an’ that’s not allowed.” Rita, 19.
