The play Educating Rita is about a twenty-six year old hairdresser who wants to get an education. She registers at the Open University and is assigned to a tutor called Frank. Normally, one would think that in a student-teacher relationship, the teacher would have more authority. At the outset of the play this is true, but as things progress, Rita gains more and more power, and eventually she gains the upper hand. From the very first words Frank and Rita exchange, Rita tries to control him. She's already 'rebelling' against authority. "I'm comin' in, aren't I? It's that stupid bleedin' handle on the door. You wanna get it fixed!...Well that's no good always meanin' to, is it? Y' should get on with it;" – Rita, 2. She gives him direct commands and also leads the conversation. She thinks that by commenting on small details in his room, she'll sound observant. Similarly, when she talks about the novels and poetry she's read, she believes she's making herself seem 'well read'. She doesn't understand that not all poems and books are of good literary quality. She's achieving the opposite of what she wants, which is showing him how un-educated and ignorant she really is.
             She also talks about things that are inappropriate and forces him to take part in the conversation. She's not sure how to act in a formal situation but she thinks that it's best to 'take command' and control the conversation by switching topics frequently and ends up being curt and rude. "It's very erotic." "...I suppose it is." "There's no suppose about it...Do you think it's erotic?" "I think it's very beautiful." "I didn't ask y' if it was beautiful." – Rita, Frank, 3. She has yet to learn that there are some things that just aren't discussed in a forma...