Pietro Spina is the main character of the novel, and is a young man living in Abruzzo, an area in Italy. A revolutionary and anti-fascist, much like Silone himself, he is on the run from the secret police that want to stop him from spreading word of the bad things they stand for.
In Abruzzo, he dresses himself as a priest, calling himself "Don Paolo Spada" (notice the fact that this last name is very similar to his own). Although being a priest seems like an innocent enough job, the police are still catching on to his charade, and Spina only has a few people that he can rely on to keep his story seeming true.
As time goes on, Spina begins to realize that a revolution will never be able to happen because of the ignorance of the people. The majority of the country, which is made up of poor peasants who only want to be able to feed themselves, are happy to live under whatever rule will give them what they need to survive.
Spina becomes upset that the country appears to be ignorant of what is going on, despite the fact that he, just like the poor peasants, is only doing what is best for himself at the moment, just like everyone else.
Eventually, staying so long in Abruzzo, Spina falls in love with a girl. Unfortunately, he is unable to tell her of his true identity, which opens up the conflict of trust between them - if he doesn't tell her, does that mean he really loves and trusts her?
