A hardened young veteran of the First World War, Ludwig now works for a monument company, selling stone markers to the survivors of deceased loved ones. Though ambivalent about his job, he suspects there"s more to life than earning a living off other people"s misfortunes. A self-professed poet, Ludwig soon senses a growing change in his fatherland, a brutality brought on by inflation. When he falls in love with the beautiful but troubled Isabelle, Ludwig hopes he has found a soul who will offer him salvation—who will free him from his obsession with finding meaning in a war-torn world. But there comes a time in every man"s life when he must choose to live—despite the prevailing threat of history horrifically repeating itself.