This film is an adaptation of the well-known novel of Benito Perez Galdos. The action takes place between the years 1865 and 1876. The movie tells of a detailed manner among other things, a lover trio during a long period of time. On the one hand, we have to marriage Santa Cruz formed by the sweet and sympathetic Jacinta and the capricious and liar of "Juanito" Santa Cruz, belonging both to the rich and upper middle class of Madrid. The third member of this trio is the lover of "Juanito" Santa Cruz, "Fortunata", belonging to the lower and labor class, who lived in the suburbs. What makes Benito Perez Galdos in this novel is an overwhelming criticism of the society of the moment, of their customs, of his blindness in religion, the great separation between social classes and between men and women. Along the novel are emerging numerous characters, all very different from each other, with personalities very marked.