Yoshigoro the tinsmith looks unsuccessfully for work in postwar Tokyo. His wife Oyuki must beg his former employers for loans. Her neighbors are also faring poorly; one has a terminally ill wife, another a depressed daughter. Yoshigoro's family cannot afford to pay their bills, and faces eviction. His daughter Masako lives in admiration of her teacher, Miss Kimura. As their debt grows higher, Oyuki pushes her family to survive.