Vassa plot
Vassa Zheleznova is a resolute merchant woman. She keeps the household in an iron grip a few years before the 1917 Revolution, even inciting her own husband to commit suicide to safeguard the family's honor and capital when he becomes involved in a scandal. After his death, Vassa pulls the reins even tighter and leaves a heavy mark on the affairs of the family. Safeguarding the family's capital is without a doubt paramount. When her Jewish daughter-in-law Rachel arrives from Switzerland with the sad news that Vassa's son is dying, Rachel wants to take her own son home. But Vassa wants to keep her grandson with herself and that turns into a painful confrontation between the two mothers. But the battle is only a harbinger of far greater disaster in Vassa's life as the 1917 revolution begins to unfold. And even Vassa has no control over that.