The Rainbow

From age 3 Ursula becomes obsessed with rainbows after a rainstorm. Will Brangwen tries to ease her fixation by making her a jam sandwich with several flavors that resemble a rainbow. This early curiosity foreshadows her lifelong search for color and meaning.

During her teenage years Ursula begins a same-sex romance with Winifred Inger, her swimming and gym teacher. They spend weekends together at Winifred's house and hike in the hills around the area. The relationship unsettles her as she navigates desire and loyalty.

Winifred introduces Ursula to an artist friend who invites her to model nude for his paintings. She refuses his advances and is thrown out, demanding her fee be paid. The rejection forces Ursula to reassess her boundaries and dignity.

Winifred visits Uncle Henry, who falls for her and proposes marriage. Winifred accepts, stirring jealousy in Ursula who feels abandoned. The event marks a turning point in Ursula's relationships.

Feeling abandoned, Ursula focuses on her own life while Anton goes off to fight in the Second Boer War. The war drags on, creating distance and uncertainty for their future. Ursula begins to imagine life beyond the farm.

After finishing school, Ursula moves to London to teach at a poor East End elementary school. She is appalled by the lack of discipline, hygiene, and the harsh conditions under which the children live. She resists the headmaster's sexual advances but faces the daily grind, shaping her resolve.

The headmaster pressures her to use physical discipline to manage the class. After a belligerent boy pelt her with stones, Ursula loses her temper and beats him with a cane in full view of the class and staff. The outburst pacifies the students but leaves Ursula overwhelmed with guilt.

Her guilt over the outburst lingers, and she ultimately quits her job at the end of the school year. She returns to her family farm, choosing distance from the capital's cruelty. The experience hardens her sense of self and her limits.

A year-and-a-half later in spring 1901 Ursula reunites with Anton at the family farm, and he wants to rekindle their romance. She also has a casual reunion with Winifred, who is now married with a baby, highlighting the changing lives around her.

Ursula begins working with a local miners' union to help unprivileged workers with wages and security. The work broadens her sense of social justice and deepens her connection to Anton.

When she fears she might be pregnant, Anton proposes marriage, but Ursula declines. She chooses to pursue her own path instead, seeking independence and personal growth.

Not pregnant, Ursula learns Anton leaves her for another woman and moves to a military post in India. The separation marks another pivotal turn in her journey toward self-defined life.

On the way home she is attacked by two mine workers who try to rape her. She escapes and hides in a rain-soaked forest before returning to the farm to find a telegram from Anton saying he has married and is in India.

After a heartfelt talk with her father, Ursula decides to start over with another teaching job in a new town two hours away. In the final scene she packs a suitcase and runs toward a rainbow that appears after a storm, echoing her childhood dream.