Educating Rita

New stages of experience often bring about growth and change in one’s life. As one experiences new phases in their life, change is an implicit part of moving �into the world’. This is clearly demonstrated in the play Educating Rita, by Willy Russell, where Rita’s growth and change comes about with her education and experiences in her social, working-class life. The Devil Wears Prada, directed by David Frankes and an interview titled 2 of us, John van Tigglemen, also demonstrate how new stages of experience can bring about growth and change in one’s life leading to a transition into a new world.

Growth and change often comes about when new stages of experience allow a transition �into the world’. This is illustrated in Educating Rita as Rita grows with knowledge and changes as a result of moving into the world of education and middle-class society. The changes made in Rita’s life include her name, from Susan to Rita after her favourite author. We also see Rita leave her husband Denny and her social class pressures, slowly gain confidence in herself to associate with �proper’ students and her views on Frank, her tutor, as well as her attitudes towards her tutorials. Rita desires to �know’ and expects Frank to teach her �everything’ in order to have choice and direction in her life, �I wanna discover meself’. Choice, to Rita, is more then �eight different types of lager’ as described by Denny and their social class. With her change, she must also sacrifice parts of her life in order to make a smooth transition into the educated world �perhaps even abandon [her] uniqueness’.

Rita sees education as a means to an end that enables her to break free from her societal restrictions as a female. It allows her to have choice and not conform to the normal working class life. Education frees Rita from her dissatisfying life which prevents her from changing, growing and moving into another world. �You know what I learn…about art an’ literature, it feeds me inside.’

Stage directions allow us to see this growth and change in Rita. We first see Rita struggling to open the door to Frank’s office, a barrier to her new stage of experience and moving into the world. We continue to see Rita burst through the door in Act One and wandering around the room showing her enthusiasm and curiosity towards education. �Don’t you ever just walk into a room and sit down?’ However, this enthusiasm gradually decreases as Rita becomes more educated and a role reversal between Frank and Rita is seen. It is Rita who ends up waiting for Frank in his office, Rita who begins to use less and less colloquial or �pop-culture’ terms, with Frank using these terms more and more. Rita, also, almost avoids any type of educational conversation with Frank on her first few tutorials, quickly interrupting or changing the subject to a more personal level �[Frank]The thing about Howard’s End…[Rita]why did y’ split up?’ We see this change dramatically in Act Two where Rita discusses more literature with Frank than her personal life which Frank does not like, �It struck me that there was a time when you told me everything.’

Before Rita goes to summer school, we find her still struggling with her confidence and transition into the world of education. It is demonstrated in her essays, especially of Peer Gynt, where she believes one simple sentence, �Do it on the radio’, can answer the given question. The gap between Rita and Frank also demonstrates the amount of growth and change required for her transition into the world. Russell uses humour to demonstrate this gap where both Rita and Frank find it difficult to understand one another especially with Rita’s colloquial language �oh sod it’, �off me cake’.

When Rita returns from summer school Frank is quite surprised at Rita’s confidence and progression. Rita not only has become more confident but she has bought new second hand clothes, a symbol of her growth into the world. We are able to see this change in Rita as she fought her old-self at summer school when approached by a professor in regards to Ferlinghetti. Instead of Rita persisting to say �Only when its served with Parmesan cheese’ she holds back and replies with �Actually I’m not too familiar with American poets’. This is a clear indication that Rita has changed her ways to move into the world of education and her new life. Rita’s confidence in herself is demonstrated as she tells Frank how often she stood up during lectures and asked questions constantly. Further growth in Rita is seen when she quotes Blake, to Frank’s surprise, and it is evident that Rita has come so far.

Frank paved the way for Rita’s transition into the educated world and he now finds it difficult to accept she has successfully made a transition from one world to another and no longer needs to depend on him. Jealousy begins to arise in Frank as Rita is now able to analyse and criticise which Frank does not like. Frank believes he has created a monster one he can no longer control, making an allusion to Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein �Oh I’ve done a fine job on you, haven’t I.’ Rita however believes her growth and change has allowed her to have choice and become a better person �I’ve got what you