A Country Gentleman and his Family

When a stolid, retiring country gentleman dies after a long period of illness, he leaves behind a widow, two daughters and a headstrong son, each of whom responds to their new-found freedom very differently. His son, blessed with a remarkable intelligence and lauded as a brilliant scholar, renounces his education and the false glory associated with it to instead settle at home and wed the widow of a local lout, despite the general consensus that the match will be unsuccessful. Will his need for perfection and his strict, exacting ways destroy the passionate love he initially holds for his wife? The daughters, too, find love in two very different suitors - one a snobbish, prudish noble parson whose family ties give her something to lord over her mother and one a man with a secret past who must decide if she will cow to the world's opinion that she should relinquish his love for the sake of propriety.