Educating Rita

Educating Rita Imagery

Frank's office

Frank's office can be easily conjured up in the readers' minds. There are numerous shelves of books, hidden bottles of alcohol, an "erotic" painting, a big bay window, stacks of papers, etc. The office is very clearly associated with Frank:  it is his space.

Rita

Rita herself is a potent image:  bright, bubbly, swirling about the room in a mass of energy. One can picture her in slightly tasteless clothing, perhaps with bold makeup on. She is always moving, talking, pointing, etc. Her vibrancy is memorable.

The painting

The painting is easily conjured in one's mind after the conversation between Rita and Frank. The reader can picture a languid, reclining nude in classical Baroque or Renaissance tradition, and can then imagine the degree to which it is "erotic."

Rita in the pub

This is an important image:  Rita in a working-class pub, surrounded by her husband and mother and their friends, singling sadly along to anodyne songs and watching her mother break out into tears. One can picture the fraught emotions Rita is experiencing as she feels acutely the sense of not belonging anywhere.