Many viewers are wondering what The White Lotus Season 3 is about in the first place. Like prior seasons, the plot takes a slow-burn approach, and it appears like very little happens. Between the Ratcliff family, Rick, Greg, and the friendship between Jaclyn, Kate, and Laurie, it can be difficult to work out the themes that connect all of the storylines together. But there is an underlying premise that motivates many of the hotel guests this season. Here’s an explanation of the overarching premise of The White Lotus Season 3.
What is the theme of The White Lotus Season 3?
The central theme of The White Lotus Season 3 is about how people cope with spiritual suffering in flawed ways, like putting up a false front or trying to avoid pain altogether. This connects to one of the core concepts of Buddhism, which is featured throughout the season, where everyone suffers and that suffering is a part of the world (as roughly translated by the First Noble Truth of “dukkha”).
The Buddhist monk Luang Por Teera in Episode 6 explains to Timothy Ratliff that many young people from America, including his daughter Piper, come to study with them due to “spiritual malaise.” Their lost connection with nature, family, and the spirit results in them emphasizing their self-identity and chasing pleasure and money to escape from pain, only to find more pain. This is a common theme for many of the rich guests at The White Lotus who see their wealth and status as an inherent part of their identity.
Tim spirals throughout the season as the realization that he is going to lose everything becomes apparent, and he is unable to tell his family about his failure. He has thoughts of ending his life, saying that he would rather die than lose his self-built image of a successful businessman. This sentiment is passed down to his son, Saxon, who believes that if he isn’t successful, that he is nothing. That’s why he tries to project himself as a swaggering male and is surprised when Chelsea sees through his act by calling him “soulless,” and it explains why he can’t process what happened with his brother on the ship.
Meanwhile, Tim’s wife Victoria can only cope with everyday pain through medication, numbing herself by taking lorazepam, a drug typically used for short-term relief from anxiety. She says if the family lost all their money that she doesn’t know whether she wants to live either, telling Tim, “I just don’t think, at this age, I’m meant to live an uncomfortable life. I don’t have the will.”
As for Rick, he stubbornly believes that finding and potentially murdering his mother’s killer will somehow bring him relief, but it’s unlikely that this will remove the chip on his shoulder without further self-reflection. On the flipside, his girlfriend, Chelsea, copes with Rick’s constant jabs by acting oblivious to them. She excuses his behavior by clinging onto the belief that they’re soulmates and ignores all of his warning signs.
The friendship between Jaclyn, Kate, and Laurie is revealed to be very thin, and they cope with their suffering by acting overly positive to one another. But this veil is swiftly removed when one of them isn’t in the room and the two others gossip behind their supposed friend’s back. The insecurities about their own lives, which aren’t as perfect as they make it seem, come out as jealous snipes.
Last but not least is Greg Hunt, who helped to murder his wife Tanya McQuoid-Hunt in Season 2 so he could inherit her money. In the pursuit of chasing wealth, he literally loses his identity and has to change his name. He tries to run away to Thailand, but Belinda notices him and later refuses to take his bribe. We’ll have to see whether karma, which Buddhists call the law of moral causation, will finally catch up to him in the Season 3 finale.
