The characters in The White Lotus are all obsessed with getting what they want. Or at least get what they think other people want.
The second season of the HBO drama follows the format of the first with a different set of characters and a different setting. Over the course of seven episodes, we watch the guests of a Sicilian luxury resort look their worst while pretending they’re happy. Infidelity and interpersonal intrigues abound. Knowing that one of these characters is doomed keeps everything pleasantly tense.
Rich people being miserable in luxury naturally lend themselves to explorations of the boredom of wealth and its roots. white lotus‘ writers walk the fine line of being explicit about this theme without ever being overly authoritative.
The series tries to get somewhat intellectual about the psychological compulsions of its characters. One accuses the other of “mimetic desire” – philosopher René Girard’s concept that our desires are not authentically our own. On the contrary, he suggests, we want what we think that will earn us the praise, admiration or jealousy of others.
This is the academic glossary on the idea, popular among a segment of the nationalist right these days. by Ayn Rand The source, long before Girard, had a much simpler term to designate these people: “junk dealers”. Rather than seeking greatness or even gratification on their own terms, their ends are all taken “second hand” from what others want.
white lotus also criticizes people who pursue their authentic desires. For all the sex and drugs, there’s a conservative undercurrent to the show. The constant, extended, low-angle shots of church spires and statues in the Testa di Moro do more than remind viewers that they are in Sicily. It is a reminder that God is always watching over your sins.