Two sisters have encounters with a wealthy family. The younger sister is rejected by the son of the wealthy family. The older sister becomes a good friend of the wealthy mother, whose most cherished possession is their cottage at Howard's End, and wishes fervently that Thompson could live there, as they are kindred spirits. Over the course of years, the older sister marries into the wealthy family, and the family tries to keep her from taking possession of Howard's End.

After playing 'Thompson, Emma''s sister in this film, Helena Bonham Carter went on to play the love interest of Thompson's husband, Kenneth Branagh, in Frankenstein. It is rumored that Carter was one of the main reasons for the subsequent Branagh/Thompson divorce. The next woman to play Thompson's sister on film (Kate Winslet in Sense and Sensibility) also followed that role by playing Branagh's love interest (in Hamlet).

Henry Wilcox:
The poor are the poor, and one's sorry for them - but there it is.

Music by Percy Grainger
Courtesy of Bardic Edition
Performed by Martin Jones