[English Year10] Educating Rita Text Response Essay

[s.ay]

Hi guys,
I hope it's okay that I'm posting my essay, despite the fact that I am in year ten. I'm just really not confident with this piece, and am hesitant to submit it without a second opinion. Apologies for the content not being very stimulating, my brain does not seem to want to work atm. Only read if you have the time/energy.
Thanks

To what extent could Frank claim to have created a new Rita?

When Frank made reference to Mary Shelley in the second act of Educating Rita, the allusion was lost on the protagonist. Rita did not understand that Frank had not only claimed responsibility, or, rather, blamed himself for the change in her, but also considered the transformation to be not dissimilar to that of Frankenstein’s. The question, however, is not whether such a parallel is valid, but whether Frank’s assertion is accurate, or to what extent. In a role as a teacher, it is only natural that he had an impact on Rita’s development in some way. But he was not the only contributing factor; Denny, Rita’s husband, and Trish, her flatmate, were also party to this transformation. All three characters had a catalytic effect on Rita’s growth, precipitating change, yet not individually responsible. In conjunction, Rita was already predisposed to change, fed up with her current vocation and quality of life. With the many factors it is impossible to accept Frank’s claim that he is wholly responsible, but he, along with Denny, Trish, and the heroine herself, did contribute and assist in the creation of a new Rita.
Frank provided Rita with the tools to learn and appreciate literature. He held the torch, illuminated a world that Rita was not yet privy to, but refrained from guiding her through it. This could stem from his reluctance to see her change, or from the little faith he put in his own ability to teach, displayed in act one, scene one, when he stated, ‘You want a lot, and I can’t give it.’ Despite this, Frank helped Rita develop, not only intellectually, but socially as well. An education gave Rita a sense of validation and provided her with the confidence she needed to talk to intellectual members of society. Rita began to socialise outside the confines of Frank’s office, and soon the ‘real’ students of the university were torn from the pedestal she had so keenly placed them on. She saw them for what they really were, claiming that ‘for students they don’t half come out with some rubbish y’ know.’ From reading and analysing classical literature rather than ‘devouring pulp fiction’, her vocabulary matured, and she was able to grasp more abstract ideas. Rather than hiding behind her humour, which was almost an innate defence mechanism for her, Rita used words and engaged in conversation. Through her time with Frank, she was exposed to a whole new culture, and the opportunities and choices that came hand in hand. She attended summer school and eventually sat her examination, a decision, as Rita told Frank, that was only made possible by him; ‘Because of what you’d given me I had a choice.’  Education provoked change, and education in the traditional sense was presented to Rita by Frank. She was, however, educated and changed in many other ways, by several other people, and through life experience itself.
Denny, Rita’s husband, embodied all that the lower class stood for, and all that Rita was trying to escape. He believed that freedom was being able to choose what beer to drink, or what football team to follow, not choosing the course of one’s life, or fighting against the hand one’s been given. Rita despised this mentality, and the hatred she felt towards the complacency of her husband made her all the more determined to change. She saw how upset her mother was, and envisioned a similar life for herself, if she did not rebel. Denny, rather than providing her with opportunities like Frank, attempted to stifle and deprive Rita of them, burning her books and papers. By taking away Rita’s right to choose, and attempting to cement her place in the lower class, Denny essentially propelled her into the waiting arms of change. She left him, found a house and, perhaps of more significance, a housemate; Trish. A woman of high intelligence and class, Trish was all that Rita aspired to be. When Frank asked about her, Rita gushed ‘Y’ know like, she’s got taste, y’ know like you Frank, she’s just got it.’  Trish was the epitome of sophistication, and, in Rita’s eyes, she seemed as close to perfection as one could get. And because she held her in such high esteem, Rita internalised everything that Trish said. She altered her voice, because ‘as Trish says there is not a lot of point in discussing beautiful literature in an ugly voice’. The idiom ‘Trish says’ was scattered throughout the latter part of the play, demonstrating the absolute faith she had in her friend’s opinion. Rita changed herself to please Trish, but was further changed when her roommate’s facade crumbled. Trish’s suicide attempt opened Rita’s eyes to the pretence of the world she thought she knew. By telling Frank ‘I was so hungry. I wanted it all so much that I didn’t want it to be questioned’, she was reflecting on the fact that she had been blinded by determination and enthusiasm, and that Trish’s downfall had made her realise just how wrong she was. Trish evoked change in Rita, initially through her words, and eventually through her actions. Under both Denny and Trish’s influence, Rita lost, and eventually found herself. However, the change seen in her would have been impossible, had she not possessed the determination and zeal seen throughout the play.

When Frank asked Rita, ‘What can I teach you?’ her response was short yet expansive; ‘Everything’. This one word revealed Rita’s inexorable desire to learn, and illustrated the extent to which she was willing to change. She was living a life ‘slightly out of step’ with the rest of her class. She did not want to accept the cookie-cutter future that had been planned for her, and decided to actively seek an alternative, explaining to Frank ‘See, I don’t wanna a baby yet. See, I wanna discover meself first.’ Her stubborn resolve was not only a help, but a hindrance to her development, but without it, she would not have experienced such dramatic change. Had Rita lived up to the lower class expectations and not emancipated herself from Denny, she would not have attended Open University. But even if she did, without the desire to seek out choice, Frank’s teachings would not have had such an impact on her. Had Rita been like any other students at the university, she would not have experienced such development through Frank. Her thirst and desperation primed her for change, and the extent to which she was transformed was reliant on how she absorbed and interpreted the world and the people around her.
Educating Rita depicts change, most significantly in the namesake. Rita had developed into a woman of words. Her vocabulary and general understanding of literature had matured significantly, and her ability to hold a conversation had improved beyond a doubt. The Rita from the beginning of the play, scattered and with little scope, was gone, replaced by a more grounded, worldly woman. This creation was not a product of one person’s influence, but of several, combined with Rita’s readiness to change. Therefore, Frank’s claim to sole responsibility is not justified.  Frank did play a role in moulding Rita, as did Denny and Trish, but, essentially, her inclination towards change was evident from the beginning.