A man and a woman would like to get married, but lack the necessary funds for the traditional "big" wedding. Thus they plan to escape to the countryside and "live in sin".

Anna Zaccheo is a beautiful young woman from a working class Neapolitan family. Her main concern is to find herself a suitable husband. She meets a young sailor Andrea one day and gets engaged to him. But while she is waiting for Andrea to return from the navy she gets raped by her boss. Her life suddenly takes a downward spiral.