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Willy Russell was born just after the Second World War (1947) in Whiston on the edge of Liverpool. He was born into a working-class family and environment that was to shape much of his development and literary work. Like Arthur Miller, another playwright with a working-class background, he would also draw on his childhood and early adult experiences for the subject matter of his work. Russell did not perform particularly well at school and there was no clear indication of a literary career ahead — although Russell does admit he enjoyed reading, and apparently thought about this as an occupation at a young age.
Russell ended up becoming a ladies’ hairdresser, and running his own hair salon. Sound familiar? Although he found this unfulfilling, it gave him time to read and write (much like Rita’s situation). Eventually he returned to studying and he did ‘O’ level English Literature at night school, and finally saved up enough money to study at college full-time. As you can see, there is a great deal of similarity between Rita’s and Russell’s own life experiences. Russell has written a number of acclaimed plays, including Blood Brothers (1981), and Shirley Valentine (1986), which, like Educating Rita, has been turned into a film.
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe Intro – explain who she was – link to BB Para 2 – References in songs – positive Para 3 – other references – negative Para 4 – Similarities between her life and those of characters in BB Para 5 – why has WR used her: effect of lack of love, tragedy, ambiguous circs of death.
1 Introduction • One of legendary icons in history – a lifestyle which others could only dream of: success, beauty and glamour; • should have been one of the happiest people alive, but had severe emotional and mental problems – like M and Mrs L. • mention at the beginning of the play forewarns the audience that the tale will end in tragedy • born to single mother who couldn’t cope • lived with foster parents • married three times but no children; great need to be loved • drug dependency and addiction • questions about the way she died
2 Songs Mentioned at beginning of both acts – mostly positively, but symbolises how lives can turn sour. Music 2 (p1) – prominent influence on Mrs J’s life – compared with her in chorus, symbolises dreams of better times, a change in her life, hope for the future, but with jarring note when husband goes off with another woman who “looks a bit like MM”.
3other references – negative Music 20 (p27) – although generally positive in tone, ominous note when she hopes Edward will be “OK / Not like Marilyn Monroe.” Music 35 (p62) – tone turned negative: references to MM’s later life – “jail’s sent him off the rails…he treats his ills with daily pills…You’d think he was dead / Like Marilyn Monroe” - hints at an early death.
4 Similarities to characters in the book: all want more out of life Mrs J - looks, deserted by husband, suffers tragedy in life Mrs L – no children, MM’s mother had mental problems like Mrs L Eddie – brought up by foster parents Mickey – behaves according to type (working class) as did MM (dizzy blonde), drug dependency
5 Why has WR used her: Shows how lack of love & biological parenting can have profound and lasting effect Seems to follow Mrs J throughout life, so we have a sense of inevitability of a tragic outcome. Symbolises hope and people’s expectations, but also tragedy: reprises of MM theme depict the rise and fall of the lady herself. Ambiguous circumstances of MM’s death echoed in death of M and E – was it superstition or class? Left open to personal interpretation, as is death of MM.
Superstition Intro – mention narrator’s words at end of play Para 2 – Mrs Johnstone Para 3 – Mrs Lyons Para 4 – Other characters (children, E and M mingle blood) Para 5 – Narrator Conclusion – your thoughts?
At the end of the play, the narrator gives us the choice: “Do we blame superstition for what came to pass? Or could it be what we the English have come to know as class?” There is certainly a lot of superstition mentioned in the play, and it may be Mrs J’s superstitious nature which eventually causes the death of her two sons.
Mrs Johnstone despite her protestations, “I’m not superstitious” introduces superstition when Mrs L puts new shoes on the table: ”You never know what’ll happen” Mrs L picks up on this weakness and makes sure of Mrs J’s silence by introducing/making up one of her own, that “twins, secretly parted…if either twin learns that he was one of a pair, they shall both immediately die.” Mrs’s J’s strong beliefs perhaps link with her religion, being a strong Catholic, which is why Mrs L makes doubly sure she will never tell their secret by making her swear on the Bible: “in the name of Jesus the thing was done” but this is made to sound evil by introducing the words “There’s a pact been sealed there’s a deal been born”
Later in Act 1 it is the sceptical Mrs Lyons, whose character is beginning to break down, who shows superstitious reactions when (she rushes to the table and sweeps the shoes off) In Act 2 it seems she is beginning to believe the superstitions she shunned: the narrator asks if she believed she was free “from the broken looking glass” when she visits Mrs J, she has finally broken down: she shouts, “I curse you! Witch!” The last time we see her is a brief, non-speaking, but vitally important scene, when, as if to finally break the hold M has over E, she believes her own superstition and (turns M around and points out Edward and Linda to him); this is the catalyst for the tragedy at the end.
Other characters join in with the superstitions: M and E mingle blood to become blood brothers; suggesting that sharing blood will strengthen their bond All the children are superstitious, believing that “if you cross your fingers and count from one to ten You can get up off the ground again,” a belief which is wished for in Act 2 by the narrator: “Maybe if you counted to ten and kept your fingers crossed It would all be just a game and no one would have lost.” Mrs J tells E to go home “before the bogeyman gets you”, a superstition which is scoffed at by Mrs L – “the sort of thing a silly mother might say to her children”
The Narrator is character who draws our attention to superstition and keeps referring to it: It begins when Mrs L puts “shoes upon the table” and each song adds new superstitions to the list: “joker in the pack…the salt’s been spilled…looking glass cracked…one lone magpie…walking on pavement cracks” – the list of things to avoid seems endless; the result of breaking the superstitions seems to be that “The devil’s got your number”. As the play progresses, the devil becomes closer and closer, as does the tragedy, until “he’s callin’ your number up today”, when the debt “must be paid” Yet he is the one who casts doubt upon superstition as the reason for the events: “or could it be what we, the English, have come to know as class”
Class Intro – mention historical setting: Liverpool, Thatcherism, class divisions Para 2 – set design Para 3 – deprivation of working class Para 4 – attitudes – scene with policeman Para 5 – education Conclusion – effect of class on lives of M and E – M’s dying words
1 BB is a musical set in Liverpool in Thatcher-run England; it examines the social divisions at the time by showing the lives of twins born to working-class Mrs J, one of whom is given away to middle-class Mrs L who cannot have children; therefore any differences are going to result from the way they are brought up: nurture, not nature.
2 Symbolically seen in set design: one half of stage is always M’s home, the other E’s: opposite poles; contrast evident especially in first act in run-down, dilapidated houses where there is a lot of crime on L of stage and “big” more expensive homes “up in the park” on right, but still evident in newer but cheap-looking council homes in Act 2.
3 Deprivation of working classes focused on in opening scenes: with “seven hungry mouths to feed” she can only dream of “ham, an’ jam, an’ spam”; she’s “dead worried about havin’ another baby” and knows that kids “can’t live on love alone” and has to buy everything on “easy terms” although it soon has to be re-possessed. Contrast with Mrs L’s lifestyle seen throughout song “My Child” where she dreams of Eddie living in a “palace” and not having to “worry where his next meal was coming from”.
4 Division is most apparent in the scene with the policeman in Act 1 - to Mrs L: “more of a prank” to Mrs J “a seriouscrime”, even though it was E who was cheeky to the policemen! (Due to social class: Lyons family have more money and thus more power; indicates how people are judged by class and how M and E are likely to be treated later in life) (examine difference in policemen’s attitude to two families here in detail)
5 Differences in education is also significant: in Act 1 we see the differences in language between M and E: M swears, using the “F-word”; E says he will “look it up in the dictionary” – M doesn’t know what that is! M, however, is more street-wise and can teach E lessons about life. In Act 2: two successive scenes: one in state school, one in private school – develop contrasts. E: “Talk of Oxbridge”; M: “when you can’t get a job”. Prospects? E: “Why is a job so important? I’ve got money, lots of it.” Gets a good job on the city council and has money and power M suspended from school, starts work in a factory, laid off then unemployed: “after being fucked off from everywhere, it seems like it was paradise.”
6 Throughout, we see the effect that class on the lives of M and E. At beginning, both boys envy each other, seen in the song “My Guy”. By the end M’s situation is so bleak that E can only pity him, but M’s final words show how he still wishes he “could have been him”. Nearly every character is a victim, whether working class, preferring a more secure, luxurious lifestyle, or middle class, preferring a more relaxed lifestyle. Russell comments on this and even hints that this may be the cause of what happens at the end of the play – “Could it be what we, the English, know as class?” – Your view?
Violence Intro – overview of progression of violence Para 2 – children’s games – song; other references to toy guns in Act 1 Para 3 – guns in Act 2 uniting three characters Para 4 – escalation of violence in Act 2: incidents involving Sammy, Mrs Lyons with knife Conclusion – final scene
1 Despite Willy Russell’s comments that he’s “not convinced that banning toy guns will do anything towards curbing the aggression in children”, there seems a definite progression in the play from childish games involving mock violence to the violence of adult life, leading eventually to the fatal shooting of both the brothers.
2 We first see the children playing in Act 1, where there is a fantasy scene: the friends begin with a game of cowboys and Indians; gradually the carnage grows to a vaster scale where guns become bombs and more and more people are killed. Of course, no one is killed in reality because “you know that if you cross your fingers /and if you count from one to ten /you can getup off the ground again/ it doesn’t matter/ the whole thing’s just a game.” (p23)
3 Toy guns dominate the lives of the children in Act 1: when we first meet Sammy he is wielding a toy gun (p18); M’s first interchange with his brother involves the theft of his “best” gun (p19) and ironically, when E arrives home his father presents him with a toy gun, at which Edward is “delighted” (p20). Another irony is that for his parting gift, E gives M a toy gun, (p32) perhaps, in retrospect, an ominous omen. Even Linda is involved in the games with guns: in addition to the “Kids Game”, she is the one who always manages to hit the target when they “shoot the little thingy” off the statue in the park with Sammy’s air rifle. (p26) (M never was a very good shot)
4 In Act 2, the violence soon escalates. There two brief references to the way that shooting unites the three friends: in the “Light Romance” when E mimes shooting at the statute (p66), reminding us of their innocent friendship in Act 1; and in the fairground scene, where Linda again triumphs (p52), perhaps this time preparing the audience for the way in which guns are going to separate them. In addition, there are two incidents involving knives: the scene on the bus where Sammy threatens the conductor, and the unexpected attempt on Mrs Johnstone’s life by a deranged Mrs Lyons.
5 Sammy’s armed raid on the bus with a knife (p40) is a precursor for the armed robbery which leads to M’s incarceration. Sammy kills in the second armed robbery (p62); in a contrast to the fantasy sequence, the narrator points out that “maybe if you counted to ten and kept your fingers crossed / It would all be just a game and then no one would have lost.” (p62)
6 This all builds up to the final scene, one of carnage: Mickey’s ineptness with guns results in him accidentally “blow{ing] Edward apart” when he waves the gun in his direction (NB it is the gun which “explodes”, not M who shoots); he even confesses: “I was gonna shoot y’. But I can’t even do that. I don’t even know if the thing’s loaded.” (p69). In his turn M is also “blown away” by the police when four of their guns “explode”: this violent image is the last we see before narrator’s final comment and Mrs J’s moving “Tell me it’s not true”. • 7 Your views?
Dreams Intro – contrast with real life, effect? Para 2 – Marilyn Monroe Para 3 – maternal dreams Para 4 – most of characters want someone else’s life Para 5 - dreams of future almost always dashed Conclusion – all dreams become unreachable
1Introduction • Most of characters have unfulfilled dreams which contrast with the stark reality of life. • Most don’t come true – feeling of hopelessness: “living on the never, never” and the “price you’ll have to pay”. • Audience’s hope is increase by dreams which throws tragedy of ending into greater relief.
2 Marilyn Monroe • ideal figure: women want to be like her; yet tragic ending • both milkman and judge indulge in fantasies about her; • emphasised by repetition of song (one of first and last) with mood changes from positive to negative: “You’d think he was dead / Like Marilyn Monroe” • links to Edward: “I’d know some real birds / Apart from those in my dreams”
3 Maternal dreams shared by Mrs J and Mrs L: • both wish E was their son; each has dreams for his future: “a credit to me” • Song acts as a soliloquy for both mothers to show real feelings, “I’ve dreamed of all the places.” • but develops a sinister note after narrator’s comment: “There’s a pact been sealed, there’s a deal been born.”
4 Most of the characters want someone else’s lives: • Mrs J wants a better life: “We’ll live like kings…like Marilyn Monroe” • Mrs L covets Mrs J’s children: ”We’ve been trying for such a long time now” • M wants to be grown up like his brother: “I wish I was our Sammy”; • ironically, when he’s older, he wishes he were younger! • E and M reflect on their own bad features and each other’s good qualities; “I wish that I could be like…that guy” - ironic • E envies M’s relationship with Linda seen in song “if I was that guy” • M jealous of E: “You’re still a kid. An’ I wish I could be as well, Eddie” • The embodiment of all the unreachable hopes and dreams are found in M’s last words: ”I could have been him!” • he resents his working class roots and wanted the same opportunities as E; he blames all his lost dreams on class – but this may not be the case.
5 Dreams of future almost always dashed; there’s always a price to pay and the life they want is always out of reach: • Mrs J’s seen in song ”Bright New Day”: “where we can begin again” • Mr Lyons makes empty promises: “I will, I promise you, have more time”. • Mickey’s relationship with E: “The Christmas party’s gonna be on me” • E’s with M: “I thought we always stuck together” • Linda: “Isn’t it great? If he’s workin’ an’ we’ve got our own place he’ll be able to get himself together an’ stop takin’ those friggin’ things…” • Linda: “The girl would sing the melody but the woman stands in doubt / And wonders what the price would be for letting the young girl out”
6 All dreams become unreachable, or reachable only with a price • hopes that they were possible sent many (Mickey, Mrs L, Mrs J, Linda) into madness and frustration. • It was Mrs L’s one dream to have a child and Mrs J’s dream to give one child an opportunity in life that led to the spiral of events ending in E and M’s deaths.
Dancing Intro – what is the general effect? Para 2 – expression of happiness in acts 1 and 2 Para 3 – sign of growing maturity Para 4 – negative connotations Conclusion – changes, as do several other aspects, including M and E’s relationship
1 Dancing is one of main themes of play and runs parallel to the storyline. It appears many times throughout the musical, often linking Mrs J and Marilyn Monroe, a screen idol of the time, suggesting the former’s dreams of better times. It is often used as an expression of happiness and a metaphor for life, but also has other meanings, suggesting nostalgia and sadness and becomes sinister towards the end of Act 2.
2 Play opens with joyful theme of dancing – this is how she met her husband, suggesting happiness (“We went dancing”), but she also lost her husband when she was pregnant and “twice the size” of MM. When Mrs J learns that she is to be re-housed, she responds by dancing with the picture of the Pope (p36)
3 The beginning of Act 2 echoes the opening of the play, as Mrs J finds happiness again, this time dancing with the milkman, because she is able to pay her bills. Even the judge in Sammy’s trial offers to take her dancing, perhaps trying to regain his lost youthful happiness!
4 It is also a sign of growing maturity: M and E have begun to dance in their own style, showing that they too have begun to grow up (p38) (NB E is dancing awkwardly, perhaps suggesting that there is tension between himself and his mother). This is also seen on p50 when M and E have been to see the adult movies, a rite of passage, and E grabs Linda’s friend and begins to dance.
5 However, later the symbolism of dancing takes on negative connotations. Things begin to go sour for M when he is coerced into helping Sammy with the robbery in order to take Linda dancing (p61). He begins to lose control of his life when he takes the pills given by the prison doctor to control his depression. This lack of control is conveyed by the metaphor describing how his mind’s “gone dancing” (p63), just like he can’t control the events that are about to unfold and the final scene here he shoots E. Dancing here has negative connotations, it shows an escape from reality, which eventually leads to madness. At the same time, dancing is used to show how Linda finally seems to be gaining happiness after all the pain when Mrs J describes how she and E “dance as friends”, reflecting the good times they had when they were younger.
