When J. ohn Barton's wife dies in childbirth，his daughter Mary becomes‘the light of his hearth，the voice of his otherwise silent home'.

She is silently adored by Jem Wilson, whom she has knownsince childhood, yet she is determined to break away from the poverty of her background and rejects his love. Without her father's knowledge she is courted by the self-satisfied, handsome Harry Carson, son of a richmill-owner, who represents everything John Barton abhors. Unable to find work as a weaver, surrounded by poverty and starvation, John Barton becomes increasingly embittered against the richer classes and strives to bringabout change. His efforts prove fruitless and he is driven to commit a crime that is to have deep repercussions on all those around him.