Strickly ballroom - Scott is portrayed as a weak and selfish character. To what extent do you agree?

Scott is portrayed as a naïve character at the commencement of Strictly Ballroom, due to the sheltered and narrow-minded environment in which he is “thrown into”. However, throughout the film Scott develops into a mature and developed character through his exposure to the outside world and Fran. Barry Fife is the head of the conformist Ballroom Dancing Federation that works on the policy of: ”One bad egg can rot the whole barrel.”. Barry and the way he runs Ballroom Dancing is the central cause of Scott’s unfamiliarity with the outside world. Shirley, Scott’s mother, is another key influence on Scott’s character, constantly ruling over his decisions. Shirley puts a ridiculous amount of emphasis on winning, because she was not able to win herself in the major Ball-room title.  Shirley is only concerned about what people will think of her and how Scott's success will reflect on her. “Scott’s won most of the trophies in this room. You see, that was the tragedy. My son was a champion.” This was Shirley’s reaction to Scott dancing his own steps in a ballroom competition. Scott shrugs off Shirley’s reaction with seemingly, not much thought. However, it is clear that the years of being exposed to Shirley’s bent ethics have greatly affected him. Particularly when we see glimmers of his mother through what he says:  “I’ve been working towards winning the Pan-Pacifics since I was six years old”. The cause of Scott’s naivety is all around him, through Shirley, Les, Scott’s dancing partner; Liz and of course, Barry who have sheltered him from reality all his life. The audience witnesses Scott develop into a mature and wise person through his meeting with Fran. From their first meeting, it is clear to see through Paul Mercurio’s portrayal of Scott that already he is learning new things and opening up. It is even more evident when Scott is taken completely out of the cold and sterile world of dance and brought into the raw and passionate world of Fran. When asked by Fran’s father: “what sort of dance do you dance so late at night?” Scott responded with the hope of winning over the Spanish man: “Passo doble.” Scott foolishly thought that he would be able to impress Fran’s father with their native dance. He was immediately proved wrong, and when Scott demonstrated his world’s interpretation of the passo doble as a heartless dance, the Spanish simply laughed at him. Scott, who had never been laughed at for his talent before, snapped angrily “What? What’s so funny?” It is then that Scott realized how different Fran’s world is to his and how he must abandon all previous ideals. He does this with surprising gusto and is even willing to be treated condescendingly and have the Spanish teach him how to dance. It is Scott’s exposure to the outside world thanks to Fran that causes him to develop. The audience witnesses this change, so Scott is not always portrayed as a naïve character.