Salvatore Di Donato is one of the most feared and respected members of the Mafia in Naples. His wife, Assuntina, is a young theater actress. During a pilgrimage to Madonna of the Arch, Salvatore and Assuntina meet Margaret, a woman proud and beautiful. Salvatore falls in love with her, leaves Assuntina and goes to live with his new love. Margaret, however, is a strong woman, free, resistant to bring controlled by Salvatore, and ultimately he is forced to return home, ridiculed in the eyes of all.
Maria
Francesco Improta is an honest fruit and vegetable peddler who lives with his elderly mother Assunta and daughter Fiorella. His wife Lucia left home two years earlier, as, in order to help the family, she did not hesitate to give herself to the boss Peppino Ascalone, with whom she is now forced to live together.