Irene flees her village with circus fisherman Aristid, endures a failed marriage and returns home only to be rejected by her father—who nonetheless raises her daughter Anikó, before they all relocate to town, where Irene remarries wealthy Gustav but remains unhappy without her father and child by her side. When a spiteful caretaker kidnaps Anikó to thwart them, Gustav and the authorities rescue the girl, revealing her grandfather’s true identity and reuniting mother, daughter and father at last.
