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This Scandinavian tragedy is based on a novel by Knut Hamsun and centers on the reminiscences of Lt. Thomas Glahn, a big-game hunter, as he reflects upon the woman who continues to haunt him even though he has "quite forgotten" her. The story jumps back four years. It is summer in an isolated Norwegian fishing village. There the hunter lives in a leased hut in the middle of a forest. His only companion is Aesop, his beloved hunting dog. While there, he encounters Edvarda, a merchant's daughter; for both it is love at first sight. They begin innocently trysting at night in the forest, but their physical expressions of love are limited to the occasional kiss. At the beginning of their relationship, Glahn gives Edvarda two green feathers. Glahn reveres this young woman, and though she would like him to make love to her, he cannot. The woman gets frustrated and the relationship begins to sour. Glahn then begins a sexual relationship with a married woman and Edvarda marries another. Later a tragedy occurs and Glahn does something terribly cruel to Edvarda before he leaves. She returns the feathers.