The Beggar, one of the masterpieces of modern Greek literature, describes the ignorance, cunning, and misery of the Greek countryside in the 19th century.

The plot unfolds in Nychteremi, a village in Thessaly, whose inhabitants are involved in a legal dispute with the local bey in order to not lose their properties. Then an old beggar, Tziritokostas, appears, along with his mischievous beggar child. After being brutally beaten by the customs officer Valachas, he will gain the sympathy of the village, which will take care of him without a second thought. The next day, the beggar will approach the women of the village and manage to sell them his supposed magical herbs, taking whatever valuable they have to offer. Indifferent to the fate of these naive women, exploiting the ignorance and prejudices of the villagers, he will spread death and lead the entire village to destruction.