A young teacher, Eva Nygaard, arrives in Greenland from Denmark to surprise her fiancé, the Doctor Erik Halsøe, but is crushed to find he has not waited for her and he is about to be married to his assisting nurse. Eva travels to a small fishing village to await the next ship back to Denmark. There she enters into a tense and often confrontational relationship with Jens, a quiet moody Dane who manages a trading company outpost. Meanwhile, Jens is trying to persuade a Greenlander named Pavia to become a company fisherman, despite Pavia's fear of alienating his fellow villagers and upsetting the spirit, Qivitoq.
Manufacturer Mads Juehl, who together with his partner Møller owns the pram factory "Fortuna", is a man with an appreciation for life's many small pleasures. Despite the fact that the company's foundations are gradually becoming unstable, he does not deny himself large personal expenses, and Møller is keen to sell his share in the company. However, his friendly feelings for Juehl keep him tied to the company, and the young clerk, Victor Pethersen, believes that the company now needs to undergo a rejuvenation process.
Anna Louise is tired of her life as a housewife in the country. So she seizes the opportunity when the vagabond Nick randomly rings the doorbell. She invites him in, and together they do all the work in the summer villa after the maid is sent on vacation. Anna Louise starts raising Nick, but soon the roles are reversed, so that Nick is raising Anna Louise. Then Anna Louise's husband arrives and he has difficulty handling the situation. Anna Louise and Nick leave the summer house together, with Anna Louise staying in the house maid's room without her husband's knowledge.
