Markens Grøde plot
Isak is a pioneer, arriving on an open patch of peatland in the forests of northern Norway, far away from civilization. He decides to claim the land for himself. He meets Inger, an unwanted woman with a cleft lip from a remote village. They get married and have three children, two boys and a girl. However, the girl also has a cleft lip. Inger kills the girl and buries her to spare Isak from suffering. However, Inger is caught and sentenced to eight years in prison, while she is pregnant with a fourth child. Isak is left heartbroken, and raises his two sons alone.