Reflection theory is displayed in a number of ways throughout the play. For example, Carol is originally displayed as a very innocent, nervous, grade oriented young women who claims to need extra help understanding John's class. At one point in the play she states that teachers how power over the children because one bad grade could prevent them from being able to get into a university. This play also makes it seem as if Carol's attitude to tenure is that it is all about power, and that John feels invincible due to the offer of this power, even though the papers have yet to be signed. Toward the end, Carol demonstrates obvious feminist techniques to completely rid John of his career. In my opinion it seemed as though the power completely flipped, showing that teachers do not have as much power as they may think. One student is not only able to prevent John from getting tenure, but she also makes sure he loses his job all together. Ultimately, she is able to push him so far that he loses his freedom, while she guarantees he goes to jail. I feel it was critical that Carol's character used sexual harassment in the manner that she did because it created a largely dominate position for her. Since the claims were false (for the most part) she shows that a female can manipulate herself into power simply because she is seen as innocent and incapable of such wrongdoings.
I feel, based on Oleanna, that the author might have grown up experiencing economic hardships, and therefore understands the extra struggle it takes to reach the top. This could similarly mean that the author could have been very much like John's character, in the sense that he grew up not understanding school and now strives to help others understand. However, that could have made the author very critical of the educational system, and that is why he puts a negative connotation on both tenure and false sexual harassment claims.
There was a part of me that thought that by the end of the play it was Carol that represented the bourgeois and John was the proletariat. If one bases these two classes only based off of income then I would be wrong, but I think you can look at it as the bourgeois don't care about the welfare of the proletariat, much like Carol didn't care that what she was doing was not only going to hurt John but also his wife and young child.
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