The former actress, Antonia and the Viennese neurologist, Dr. Wolfgang Mach get along quite well. Their 11 year old son, Niki, is the most important link in their marriage. Niki is involved in an automobile accident and suffers severe skull and brain traumata which leave him handicapped for life. Her husband, on the other hand, gives way to resignation. From his experiences as a physician, he knows there is no chance of recovery. In defiance of her milieu, the child's mother does not place him in an institution although she not only jeopardizes her marriage but is herself isolated as a result. Although her husband loses his nerves, seeks refuge in the arms of another woman, is through with his son and finds their life together to be unbearable, Antonia learns how to cope with her milieu which rejects the handicapped.