Personal Growth and Improvement

The theme of personal growth and improvement is at the heart of The Hotel Nantucket. All the characters engage with this theme in some capacity, but Lizbet embodies it most of all. For Lizbet, the Hotel Nantucket represents a fresh start in life which she undoubtedly makes the most out of.

Right off the bat, this theme is introduced through a quote attributed to Socrates: “The secret of change is to focus all your energy not on fighting the old, but on building the new” (24). This quote becomes Lizbet’s mantra: one she often repeats in times of anxiety or painful reminiscing. Lizbet’s frequent invocation of this quote signifies her earnest desire to begin again after the loss of her life with JJ.

Lizbet learns the hard way that growth is not linear. At the start of “Hot-Girl Summer,” Lizbet’s professional...