The Toils, tribulations, and passions of a widow and her two sons in a small Spanish fishing village in the early 20th century. As the boys grow up, the mother develops feelings for a man, who ends up betraying her. She becomes disillusioned by men, and she realizes that her own sons are just as bad, though her eldest son proves to be dependable and hard-working. But treachery looms in another generation of fishermen.