It is the fictional account of John Rivers, a student physicist in the 1920s who was hired out of college as a laboratory assistant to Henry Maartens.

In 1921, Rivers, who was extremely sheltered by his widowed mother, is employed as a lab assistant to Henry Maartens, after receiving his PhD.

Rivers develops respect and fondness for the family, regarding Henry as a genius and his wife Katy as a goddess.

Rivers' experience with the Maartens family takes an important turn when Katy has to leave for a time to care for her dying mother.

Rivers laughs off the poem, says that it reminds him of his father's sermons, and hides his true emotions.

Rivers prepares to leave, saying that his mother is ill, but Katy and Ruth die in a car accident.

Huxley portrays various aspects of his ideology about subjects such as God, sex, history, literature, intellect and death.