Rita sees the middle class as totally different from herself, and although doesn't want to be working class, doesn't feel she will be accepted as middle class either. She has the idea that all middle class individuals are free, and stereotypes, making sweeping generalisations. She assumes they all eat wholemeal bread, flora, and watch the BBC, as this is seen as more intellectually stimulating than ITV, the channel that many of the working class watch. This shows that she stereotypes certain groups of people from what she has heard, instead of her own views, she doesn't wait to get to know them before judging.
As Rita believes herself to be sophisticated and well read, she has named herself after an author. Her real name is Susan, but Rita Mae Brown is a pornographic author, and as Rita likes her books, she laughably adopts her name and believes she is making herself seem more sophisticated, once again showing her complete misunderstanding that sexually explicit novels are classified as good literature. Such an action again indicates her naive outlook and lack of literary awareness at the beginning of the play.
There are many themes during the play, change is probably the most important as it shows how an individual can develop and learn in both positive and negative ways, the play indicates the protagonist changing from one extreme to the other, eventually discovering a happy balance in between.
Rita, at the start, is a very bold character, reflected in her unsophisticated and flamboyant choice of clothing, and is dissatisfied with her life. Throughout the play she changes, losing her individuality and flare, wanting to become the same as all the other students around her. She even copies her flatmate with a false bohemian style, desperate to fit in and be accepted. She has stopped smoking, believing this makes her more middle class, wears different clothes that are very over the top, and even tries to talk in a posh way, sounding completely unnatural and false. She has improved in her intelligence and on her course, yet also goes over the top, trying to appear very intellectual. This makes her seem almost boring, and has none of the original Rita in her; this is what really annoys frank. Eventually at the end, she reaches a good medium, not resting at either of the extremes, and becoming more sophisticated and wiser, yet still keeping the edge and flare she had to begin with. This shows how she overcame the problems with her determination, and how she reversed the bad things into positive factors.
Education is another key theme; this is after all what helped to bring about the change in the central character. It can mould a person after time, influences them and the way they see things. Rita wanted to know "everything", but didn't understand how this was an unrealistic ambition. She hardly knew anything at the start, but started to study all the time until she knew a lot about all types of books and authors. She didn't realise that this wouldn't necessarily bring about the happiness and choice she strived for.
Class divisions and hierarchy play a large role in the play, as Rita passes through the changes that lead her from one class to another. She learns and develops, and eventually is ready to become accepted as middle class when she takes her last exam and passes well.
Terry Felipe 11GD
