During World War I, an ancient feud divides the industrial area in the county of Nógrád. The workers of the steal factory start a strike, but the miners do not support their cause. Sanyi from the steal factory and Ilonka from the mining community fall in love with each other, but can only meet secretly. When the boy dances with the girl in the pub of the miners, he is recognised and knocked down.

1922. Sándor serves as a farm-hand, but would like to become a blacksmith. He is completely enchanted by the beautiful wife of his new master.

Vera gets acquainted with Imre on a tram. Later, she learns that he is the brother of one of her pupils. They meet again. Imre's too passionate courting provokes refusal from the reserved school-teacher.

In May 1919 in a small rural town beside Salgótarján the local high society wants to get the power back with the leadership of dr. Máriáss, exploiting the outside attack launched against the Republic of Councils.

The director discusses film subjects with three screen-play writers. The three episodes are formed from readers' letters.

Imre, secretary of the illegal communist party arrives in Budapest secretly in 1942, in order to start the newspaper of the party in the fight against war. Not even his own mother can see him.

Panni, coming from a landless family of ten and Miska have loved each other for a long time. The pretty Panni, however, has another suitor as well: Komáromi, the big farmer. The two men fight from time to time, but then, during the time Miska is serving his military duty, Panni marries Komáromi to end the tremendous squalor of her family.

A heavily indebted schoolteacher raising two marriageable daughters is buoyed by rumors that his long-lost uncle in America is a millionaire, until the uncle’s unexpected arrival in poverty sparks a rush of creditors, patrons and fortune-seekers. Ambitious lawyer Jenő Szekeres orchestrates the deception so that the family, the town and himself profit from the false fortune, and even when the truth comes out, everyone, including Szekeres, now eyeing a political career, chooses to uphold the lie.

Balazs, who is married to Polika, welcomes his friend Viktor who pays him a surprise visit, unaware that Viktor and Polika dated each other in their adolescent years.

At Christmas Eve in 1944 the runaway Pintér and Gozsó get through the Soviet blockade around Budapest. Pintér intends to hide in a flat abandoned by his own relatives, but he finds his relatives called the Turnovszkys, who are hiding the Jewish Jutka as well. Love unfolds between Zoltán and Jutka.

A female worker in Socialist Hungary gains the acceptance of her male colleagues.