In Sicily's 1800s Ottavio's boyhood is spent as a sulfur mine carusu (basket carrier) and muzzu (stable boy) in a baronial estate. His youthful contractural marriage results in an act of violence, influenced by the Sicilian village code of honor. Ottavio escapes authority and embarks for America In Gran Destinu. He soo finds himself in the turmoil of America's 1920s as he tries to raise his family in a Democratic open society struggling with its flaws and prejudices against Italians and other foreigners. His illegal immigrant status hangs over him as he finally realizes that while he was recognized as a Sicilian hero for upholding the village code of honor, in America he should reject that form of justice. He must now march for the cause of justice toward Italian immigrants.