今年的诺贝尔文学奖即将颁奖，所有人的目光都聚集在了那些有可能获奖的作家们身上。让大家都没有想到的是，最终的大奖落在了一个名叫安德鲁（保罗·纽曼 Paul Newman 饰）的年轻人头上，这个看上去就不太靠谱的作家似乎将更多的热情放在了女人和酒身上，而并没有放在文学创作上。安德森小姐（艾尔克·萨默 Elke Sommer 饰）成为了安德鲁的朱莉，将打理他在颁奖典礼上的一切大小事务，美丽的安德森很快就吸引了安德鲁的注意。和安德鲁一起领奖的还有一个名叫马克思（爱德华·罗宾逊 Edward G. Robinson 饰）的男人，他带着他可爱的侄女艾米丽（黛安·贝克 Diane Baker 饰）一同前往瑞典。

故事发生在位于比弗利山庄的一所贵族学校中，能够进入此学校就读的学生们，非富即贵，所以，校园里奢侈和自由的风气和普通的学校是无法相比的。在这里，成绩和品行都不重要，重要的是五颜六色的名牌时装，是闪闪发光的珠宝配饰，是张扬奔放肆意挥洒的个性。我们的主人公雪儿（艾丽西亚·希尔维斯通 Alicia Silverstone 饰）就在这样的世界里生活成长着。一位转学生的到来吸引了雪儿的注意，在偌大的校园里，在同学朋友的眼中，这名转学生简直就是“怪胎”，穿着平庸打扮又土气，雪儿决定帮助她改头换面，“重新做人”。在雪儿的指导下，转学生果然有了焕然一新的面貌，甚至更胜雪儿一筹，这让雪儿的内心里十分不平。

正艳每星期都搭乘火车往返于学校和家乡小镇之间，与焕友在小站的一次邂逅后，改变了她的一生。从相识，到相爱，相恋，到最后步入婚姻的殿堂，正艳都沉浸在被爱的幸福里，但正当两人享受爱的喜悦时病魔降临到焕友身上；最终焕友带着爱遗憾的离开了人间，正艳陷入了无限的悲痛和绝望之中。然而此时焕友的一封封神秘的信件却纷至沓来……

Charged with leading demonstrations for the democratization movement, student activist Kim Gi-young (Moon Sung-keun) is a fugitive from the law. He sneaks into a mining village on the verge of being shut down, with a fake ID in hand. Feeling frustrated with the current state of activism, which centers around the intelligentsia, he gets a job as a man-of-all-work at a coal factory and meets the motley inhabitants of the mining village. Dae-sik (Yang Jin-yeong) works to support his family in place of his father, who is in prison for instigating a strike. Detective Kang (Lee Su-chan) always keeps a sharp eye on everything that goes on in the village. Then there are strike organizer Cheon Do-seong (Kang Neung-won), fellow worker Jeong (Hwang Hae), Taek's mother (Kim Kyung-ran), and Sun's mother (Jo Ju-mi). Sung-cheol (Park Joong-hoon), whose father is a local bigshot and the owner of the coal factory, lords it over the neighborhood bars and cafes. Angry at his father (Park Kyu-chae) for leaving his mother and marrying another woman, Sung-cheol vents his resentment on the cafe girls and factory workers. Meanwhile, Young-sook (Shim Hye-jin), who works as a prostitute at the local cafe, is becoming fed up with Sung-cheol's violent and demeaning treatment of her. When she meets Gi-young, who is reserved but warm, she begins to have feelings for him and stops selling sexual favors. As the impending miners' strike darkens the horizon, Gi-young and Young-sook fall in love and enjoy each other's company. Then one day, Sung-cheol receives news of his mother's death and wreaks havoc at the cafe. When Young-sook refuses to satisfy his demands, he starts to beat her up. Gi-young tries to stop him, but his intervention brings him to the attention of Detective Kang and he is hauled off to the police station. Gi-young undergoes torture at the hands of the police, but he is eventually cleared of all charges and released. When he finally comes to through Young-sook's devoted care, he tells her that he is a wanted fugitive. His identity is soon exposed and he is forced to run once more. Young-sook decides to leave the village with him, and heads to the cafefor her things. While making her last coffee delivery, Young-sook runs into Sung-cheol, who tries to stop her from leaving. She ends up killing him, and is dragged off by the police as Gi-young waits for her at the train station.