When Rita's mother says "we could sing better songs than those", Rita realises she is not the only one in her family who wishes could change herself. She understands her mother also longs or had once longed for the opportunity to change herself and her lifestyle.
This shows that even people who seem happy about their lives sometimes wish they were better or different somehow. By defying her reality and wanting something more, Rita shows everyone what many people would like to do: being herself and doing whatever is necessary to become someone better, in her case, through getting an education.
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2 comments:
Why do you assume Rita's mother "seems happy", Laura? Anything in the place that suggests that?
Going beyond, if the words uttered by Rita's mom can have such an empowering effect upon her, an adult... can you imagine the power of negative remarks a significant caretaker makes can have upon a child? As teachers, taking such things into account can certainly make a difference, don't you think?
Big hug,
Gladys
I felt that somehow Rita's mother was "happy" as she encouraged Rita to have a baby, work in the hairdresser's, do what Denny wanted... Perhaps, more than happy, it would be "used to" her lifestyle, or "resigned" to it.
Negative remarks can be devastating for children. They are very sensitive and accept what caregivers tell them... If you are constantly making negative remarks or punishing them, children will grow to be negative people, probably with social problems. As teachers, we need to be as positive as possible in the classroom. Even if the child may do something wrong, instead of punishing we can help them see the mistake and solve it together.
Hug,
Lau
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