 When the insane philosopher Quincas Borba dies, he leaves his dog also called Quincas Borba and his fortune to his naive disciple and friend Pedro Rubião de Alvarenga. Rubião moves to São Paulo, where he meets Sofia and her greedy husband Cristiano Palha, and he believes that they are his friends. Rubião has a crush on Sofia, who manipulates him with her husband, dissipating his inheritance.