After librarian Isolde attempts suicide, she leaves her politician husband for a younger student with a dark past. Isolde's former husband, however, has something else in mind for the young man.
Based upon the novel "Hærværk" by Tom Kristensen about the self destructive person.
The literary reviewer Ole Jastrau chooses to free himself from his well-ordered middle class life.
He allow the seriously left-wing writer Steffensen move in with himself which soon causes disintegration of his home an marriage.
Werner (William Rosenberg) is an inspector for group of farmes called Digeskov. Left alone by Digeskovs owner, Werner is tricking small neighboring farmes out of there land. The owners doughter find out and stops Werner and she falls in love with a young poor farmer from a neighbor farm.