Ingles

Act i, scenes 1-4

Summaries

Detailed summaries
SCENE 1 - Rita begins her 'education* with Frank
O Rita makes a clumsy first entrance. Q Frank attempts to persuade Rita to find a different tutor. 0 The audience is made aware of Frank's drink problem.
I DID YOU KNOW?

The opening scene, as for the entire play, is set in a first-floor room of a Victorian-built university in the north ofEngland.
When the curtain rises, we see Frank, who is in his early fifties,

All the 'action' of the play takes place
in Frank's study.

Other important

busily searching along rows of bookshelves to find a hidden bottle

'scenes' of the play
that take place

of whisky. Now a rather disenchanted English lecturer, he has no
enthusiasm for the Open University course on which Rita hasenrolled. Note the stage directions which describe the scene. Be aware of these as you are reading the play.

outside this room
are reported by Frank or Rita.

CHECKPOINT 7
Can you find other

examples of how Russell uses an

The first scene opens up Rita's character, enabling the audience to

see why she has been driven to join the course. Rita's first entry is a
clumsy affair,rattling at the door knob and unable to get in. However, there is an air of determination about her which Frank

entrance for comic effect?

16 Educating Rita

Summaries

Act i, scenes 1-4

finds impossible to ignore. She is like a 'breath of air1 (p. 11), different from all the other students, and it is this freshness which is
so appealing.

When talking about the picture of a nudereligious scene hanging on Frank's wall, Rita asks her tutor whether or not he thinks of it as erotic. On hearing Frank's reply, 'I suppose it is', Rita's reaction is to state, There's no suppose about it. Look at those tits' (p. 3). This

CHECKPOINT 8
How does Russell bring out humour in the play?

is typical of Rita and Frank's conversation as they get acquainted. Their subjects of conversationquickly change, Rita offering Frank a cigarette and talking about people being afraid of death, which then
reminds her of a poem on the same topic. Frank immediately

assumes that Rita is speaking of the celebrated Welsh poet, Dylan

Thomas, only to be told that she is, in fact referring to a poem by the contemporary Liverpool writer, Roger McGough. Not
surprisingly, Frank has to admit, 'Idon't think I know the actual
piece you mean ...' (p. 5).

We learn that Rita's real name is Susan and that she is calling herself by this new name after Rita Mae Brown, the authoress of her favourite novel entitled Rubyfruit Jungle. Frank is clearly not
impressed by such'writing.

They then talk about E.M. Forster, the educated class life in
comparison to Rita's, Yeats and Rita's learning.Rita talks about life

ICHECK
THE NET

at the hairdressers, herself and how at twenty-six, she feels 'out of step' (p. 12); while everyone else is expecting her to settle down and

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appreciation of the play.

have children in the near future, Rita wants to discover herself first.
Rita isattempting to create a new identity for herself. She is
searching for a new meaning in her life and Frank is that means to

an end. This lack of education but clear desire to learn is revealed in
many ways in this scene, for instance when Rita asks Frank what
assonance means. Education is a way for Rita to escape from her

working-class surroundings. Partly fearful of taking on such a burdensomeresponsibility and
partly because of the course's unsocial hours that limit his drinking
time, Frank encourages Rita to change tutors. Initially, she exits

Educating Rita 17

Act i, scenes 1-4

Summaries

only to return moments later with the command, 'you are my
teacher - an' you're gonna bleedin' well teach me' (p. 14). And if Frank was left in any doubt as to what he was taking...