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James Hart, a farmboy from Minnesota, looks forward to his first year of law school. But being unprepared for his first day of "Contracts" he is shrouded by Professor Charles W. Kingsfield, Jr., pronouncing the hapless Hart as "dead" in his class. This means that he will never call on Hart meaning his part of the class's socratic dialogue will be at an end.

Hart finds out that Kingsfield shrouds one student each year and that student remains deceased all year long. Kingsfield was the reason Hart has chosen to come to this school and starts having nightmares now that he is the former Mr. Hart.

Another student, Franklin Ford III, is organizing a study group and invites Hart to join. The members of the study group decide to have each member do an outline of one of the subjects that they can then copy for each member of the group. Hart wants to do the contracts outline but the others worry that Hart cannot be effective if he is shrouded.

In a bold move to get Kingsfield to call on him Hart comes to class wearing a white sheet. Kingsfield cannot help but call on Hart who is very ready for this time.