Lawyer Wakem takes the mill on the river Floss away from Edward Tulliver (whose ancestors have owned it for 300 years) and becomes the worst enemy of Tulliver's family. When Edward's daughter, Maggie, grows up, she falls in love with Wakem's son Philip. However, her brother Tom (true to the memory of their father) forbids her to meet him again. When she visits her cousin Lucy Deane, Lucy's fiance, Stephen Guest, falls in love with Maggie at first sight, further complicating matters.
