It's 1620. 21-year-old John Alden is a cocky, illiterate orphan, who works as a carpenter on the crew of the Mayflower, and dreams about going to the new world to make his fortune. John passes time with a Pilgrim friend, rating the girls on the ship from one to ten. One of them, Priscilla Mullins, is a "ten," with whom John is enthralled. Unfortunately, she doesn't talk to "strangers," i.e., non-Pilgrims. Thus begins a courtship that's as rocky as the ocean voyage. John becomes a member of a "friend group" on the ship that includes Priscilla. The friends try to enjoy themselves as best they can during an harrowing ocean voyage, even celebrating Christmas (forbidden because it's not in the Bible). Upon landing in the new world, the young women stay on the boat, while the young men explore the land and encounter "savages." John proves to be intelligent and brave, and Priscilla starts to fall in love with him. Then she learns that he intends to return to England, as soon as he has enough furs to sell. She becomes engaged to Joseph, a pious Pilgrim who believes it's the Pilgrims' destiny to take over the land from the Natives. The friends find this idea, at the very least, debatable, especially after encountering an actual “savage,” who speaks better English than they do. A deadly disease befalls many of the Pilgrims, and John finds himself saving Joseph's life. John's friends ultimately become his "family," and he decides to stay with them in the new world. He comes to the conclusion that Joseph would make a good husband for Priscilla. But she says, "Why don't you speak for yourself, John?"