For years, Anne-Marie Gratigny has buckled beneath the weight of her condescending husband Gilbert and his constant oppressiveness. An unrelenting boor, he belittles, chides and torments her until the day that he perishes in an automobile accident. Anne-Marie, of course, is thrilled by this turn of events. Among other things, it will give her the freedom to abscond with her extramarital lover, Leo, a builder of boats who is preparing to head off to China on business and to take Anne-Marie along. Unfortunately for Anne-Marie, these plans are dashed when her unwittingly intrusive family moves in to "console" her and upsets her relationship with Leo. Anne-Marie finds that she can never quite bring herself to the point of confessing her true feelings about any of the tumultuous events that have happened.