The plot is based on the story of a village demented youth. He is a local fool, living in a poor hut with a sick mother. His neighbors are the Jewish family of the local blacksmith Mendel, and he is secretly in love with his youngest daughter Sonya. When the war starts, the Germans quickly occupy the village. Panic begins among the Jews, as well as in the Mendel family, and they try to equip a shelter at home, which the young man becomes aware of. Hoping to get the blacksmith's house, he reveals this secret to the Germans, but the German military police take him to their headquarters. The protagonist finds Sonya in his garden and wants to save her life, not imagining what difficulties this decision will turn out to be for everyone.