A reflection both on the corrupting power of fame and the disappointments of family life. Etienne is a famous novelist who is unconcerned by the unhappiness of his daughter Lolita, an overweight, sulky and insecure but gifted aspiring soprano. Lolita would love her father to look at her but unfortunately he is blinded by visions of himself. Lolita's apparent docility conceals a deep undercurrent of loathing, both for herself and for a world which she feels judges her solely on her appearance and, to add insult to injury, it seems that every person she meets wants to know her solely as a means of getting to her famous father.