The timid and indecisive economist Novoseltsev falls in love with director Kalugina.

The film covers the period from 1900 to 1917. Historical events—the Russo-Japanese War, January 9, and others—are shown through the eyes of a mother who begins to realize that her children have many like-minded followers, and thanks to this, she comes to believe in the feasibility of the ideals for which her eldest son sacrificed himself. Only the awareness that his cause is not hopeless, that it is achievable and close to victory, gives her the courage to endure separation from her loved ones and wandering.