The inner drama of Jiří Mánka, a forty-year-old cashier at Živnostenská banka, who has artistic talent, both musical and painterly. After his experiences on the battlefields of World War I, he chose a job that provides him with a very good livelihood, but does not satisfy his ambitions. He lives alone with his mother and gets along well with his brother Teodor, with whom he shares a love of music. Jiří's life is shaken up by a chance encounter with a young, attractive girl named Adéla, with whom he feels relaxed and rejuvenated, at least at first...