The Silence of a Life

Edith Krause, being five years old, strays through the ruins of Frankfurt on the Main. They pick her up, when she lies in the ruins of War completely exhausted. Her father had died on consumption, her mother had been committed to a mental hospital, thus the Welfare Office sent her to a children's home. Sister Ambrosia and the other nuns only convey an impression of decency and compassion to the outer world. Inside, unbelievable dramas take place, hard to beat in cruelty. Edith turned out to be a good worker and therefore they declare her being feeble-minded. This way she has to work hard for the nuns for another six years although they actually should have released her for long. After that, she works in a hotel laundry and meets a nice couple. Now finally the tide is turning. She can look back on and reappraise her memories. Although she meets extreme opposition, she does not give up and even finds one of the perpetrators. In the end she turns her back to the world and delves into the silence of her life.