One of the few things, perhaps even the only thing I was sure of, was that my name was Mattia Pascal. Thus begins the novel. Mattia, fleeing from a burdensome financial and family situation, accidentally wins a fortune in Monte Carlo. When he wants to return home, he discovers a note about his suicide in the newspaper. Initially outraged, he fully enjoys his new freedom as Adriano Meis. However, his shadowy existence without documents does not allow for a civil life: he cannot even keep a dog, as he cannot pay taxes, let alone enter into a marriage. So he decides to change his identity once again.