Alexandre Boursault, a provincial notary, would have been the happiest man alive if his wife did not openly display her political views and participate in all kinds of demonstrations.

A deserter who has lost all hope meets with a little girl in a ruined city.

Hellé is a young deaf-mute living among the mountains. She’s ignored by everyone except, now and then, the local woodsmen, who use her for their pleasure. She has no education, no knowledge of right or wrong. One summer, a young man comes to spend the holidays in her village.