在战前的日本,一个象阿辛这样的年轻妻子,必须和婆婆共同生活。即便是一个非常刻薄、蛮不讲理的婆婆,做媳妇的也得侍候她,无条件地服从她。这在现在看来也许不可容忍,但在当时却是理所当然的。当婆婆的可以给怀孕的女儿吃大量的鱼肉,而同样怀了孕的媳妇阿辛只有青菜淡饭,她也决不能出一句怨言。婆婆强迫怀孕已八个月的阿辛长期下地干重活,累得她失去了孩子,她也只能默默地忍受。多年以后,当阿辛自己当了婆婆,回忆起这些辛酸的往事时,她还能那样残酷地对待在战后已经得到解放,生活条件优裕的儿媳吗? In prewar Japan, a young wife like Asin must live with her mother-in-law. Even a very mean, unreasonable mother-in-law, a wife who has to serve her, unconditional obedience to her. This may not be tolerable for now, but it was taken for granted at that time. When her mother-in-law can eat a lot of fish for pregnant daughters, Asin, pregnant with the same pregnant wife, has no choice but to express her grudges. Asin forced her pregnant eight months of long-term under heavy-dry work, tired she lost her child, she can only endure silently. Years later, when Assin became her mother-in-law and recalled these bitter memories, she treated her brutally as her daughter-in-law who had been liberated and had a good living condition after the war.