The philosopher Democritus has a toothache, so a dentist from ancient Abdera sets off for his house. En route, he gets into a fight with a donkey driver. This conflict eventually causes all of Abdera to go crazy. Just when the city is seconds away from having a civil war, Democritus' apprentice shows up to ease the city's tensions with a gift.

Der Streit um des Esels Schatten

Rosa von Praunheim, the director of the film, parodies himself and his time as a professor at the Film School in Potsdam Babelsberg, where he taught for six years.