To support her art she works as a bar hostess. It is in this seedy setting in which she meets Yusuke, an art gallery owner. This leads to marriage, which in this world - Yusuke is the eldest son - is fraught with duty and guilt and submission for the erstwhile artist Jill. Yusuke must uphold the "ie," and the roles assigned to all within are clearly and rigidly defined. Jill is placed below and at the mercy of Yusuke's mother.