William Franklin arrives at St. Judes, the only lay teacher among a staff of Catholic brothers. He is quick to realize his teaching methods are diametrically opposed to those of the brothers, who revert to the use of verbal and physical abuse. Franklin succeeds in building a trusting relationship with the boys, which enables him to unlock their hidden talents and open their minds to the beauty of poetry. But Franklin has memories of his own that plague him from the Spanish Civil War, and when two boys are severely beaten on Christmas Day, it is more than he can bear, and he goes head-to-head with the brutal prefect Brother John.