Totem plot
The Bauer family hires a domestic help. This young woman, Fiona, is placed in the middle of the five-member family with only a few basic instructions. The inhabitants lead their own lives; they don't care much about each other, and they don't care how they are perceived by the outside world. Fiona prepares for each new day without question and without comment. Awkward dinners, tragic loneliness, and maladaptive behavior don't seem to throw her off balance. No one in the house notices that Fiona is struggling with business herself.