Act 2 Scene 4

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(No Transcript)
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Act 2 Scene 4

• Summary
• Rita changes jobs.
• Frank is still drinking.
• He is increasingly jealous of Rita and Tiger.
• He gives Rita his poems to write an essay on.

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Act 2 Scene 4

• Note down all the things that upset Frank in this
  scene.

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Act 2 Scene 4

• Rita has left the hairdressers and now works in a
  bistro.
• She says she is fed up of talking irrelevant
  rubbish and can now talk about whats
  important.
• The change in jobs is part of Ritas
  metamorphosis into an entirely different
  character.
• She has been spending more and more time with
  Tiger and the other students.

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Act 2 Scene 4

• Frank
• Franks apparent jealousy over Tiger makes him
  sound insecure and childish.
• Perhaps you dont want to waste your time coming
  here anymore?
• He feels like he is losing Rita and is a
  pathetic figure, wallowing in his own misery.
• He continues to drink heavily.

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Act 2 Scene 4

• Find quotations to prove the following
• Rita disapproves of Franks drinking.
• She enjoys spending time with the other students
  so much she doesnt always have time for Frank.
• Her exam is still important to her.
• Why do you think Frank gives her his poetry to
  criticise?

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Act 2 Scene 4

• Frank is testing her, to see if she really does
  know what matters.
• He wants to see if Rita has lost the ability to
  respond openly and honestly.
• He is afraid she has become cold and subjective
  like the other students he despises so much.
• No sentimentality, no subjectivity. Just pure
  criticism.

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Act 2 Scene 5

• Summary
• Rita is full of praise for Franks poetry.
• Frank dismisses her and her opinions as
  worthless.
• Their relationship is breaking down.

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Act 2 Scene 5

• Oh Ive done a fine job on you, havent I?
  Mary, Mary Shelley do you understand that
  allusion, Rita?
• Whats up Frank, dont y like me now that
  little girls grown up, now that y can no longer
  bounce me on daddys knee an watch me stare back
  in wide-eyed wonder at everything he has to say?
• Found a culture have you Rita? Found a better
  song to sing have you? No youve found a
  different song, thats all and on your lips
  its shrill and hollow and tuneless.

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Act 2 Scene 5

• Rita describes Franks poems as brilliant,
  witty, profound and full of style.
• Franks view is in stark contrast worthless,
  talentless shit and should be recognised as such
  by anyone with a shred of common sense.
• He notes that Rita, on her first visits would
  have said exactly the same.
• He feels that, like Mary Shelley, writer of
  Frankenstein, he has created his own monster.

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Act 2 Scene 5

• He describes his own poems as pretentious,
  characterless and without style.
• He is suggesting that the new Rita, who admires
  them so much, possesses the same qualities.
• He sees the new her as worthless.
• Youve found a different songand on your lips
  its shrill and hollow and tuneless.

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Act 2 Scene 5

• RITA
• She tells Frank she no longer needs him.
• She now knows what clothes to wear, what wine
  to buy, what plays to see
• Nobody calls her Rita anymore.
• The change in name seals the metamorphosis of her
  character.
• Instead of playing at being different, Rita has
  finally found her true self she no longer needs
  to hide behind a new name and accepts that she is
  Susan.

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Act 2 Scene 6

• Summary
• Time has passed.
• Frank calls Rita/Susan to remind her about the
  exam.
• What is the purpose of this short scene?
• What does it tell us about Franks feelings for
  Rita?

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Act 2 Scene 6

• The telephone call show that, since his last
  meeting with Rita, Frank has had time to consider
  his words and actions.
• He has come to the realisation that Rita should
  have the opportunity to sit her exam.
• He is unable to accept her change of name because
  it represents her change in character.

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Act 2 Scene 7

• Summary
• Frank is leaving for Australia.
• A new confident Rita emerges.
• Frank gives Rita the present of the dress.

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Act 2 Scene 7

• What has Rita learned from Trishs suicide?
• What do we learn about Franks feelings for Rita
  in this last scene?
• Frank is a good teacher...

FOR AGAINST
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Act 2 Scene 7

• Lighting a cigarette marks a partial return to
  Ritas old ways.
• We have evidence that Rita/Susan has matured into
  a confident and articulate woman who is finally
  at ease with herself.
• She can now truly be herself.
• Education has provided her with the ability to
  choose her own destiny, rather than having her
  life mapped out by others.
• I might go to France. I might go to my mothers.
  I might even have a baby. I dunno. Ill make a
  decision. Ill choose.

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Act 2 Scene 7

• Frank has the chance of a fresh start in
  Australia.
• His love for Rita becomes clear as he shows he
  has remembered her words and bought her a gift of
  a new dress.
• There are distinct sexual overtones at the end of
  the play.
• I never thought there was anything I could give
  you. But there is. Come here, Frank...