[1] The film's theme comprises four episodes, offering the public a glimpse into the lives of both rich and poor families in Italy during the 1960s.

Maria, a poor Sicilian peasant, seeks refuge in her letters to the writer Donna Lucrezia, as her family pressures her to marry the coarse Francesco.

Donna Lucrezia advises Maria to imagine her family and Francesco differently, but it only complicates matters.

A troubled aristocratic couple from northern Italy, Carla and Uberto, navigate their strained relationship.

Roman playboy Luigi, rejected by his ex Camilla, encounters a German couple on the beach.