Madame Aubain is the envy of all her neighbors. She employs Félicité Barette, a hardworking housemaid who is paid very little. Félicité is fiercely loyal even though Madame Aubain has a reputation for being a difficult employer. Madame Aubain has been forced to deal with the debts left to her after the death of her husband. She has already sold several properties to raise the funds to pay off these debts, and as a result, she has relocated to a new home in Pont-l’Évêque, bringing her two children and Félicité with her.

The house in Pont-l’Évêque serves as a reminder of better, wealthier days. Each day, Madame Aubain is presented with a reminder of how she has been forced to downscale her life. She has lost access to certain comforts that once defined her middle-class life. Now, for example, she must keep the parlor closed and cover the furniture inside with dust sheets. Félicité lives in a room on the second floor. She rises each day at dawn and then spends the day working hard and ceaselessly for her employer. Félicité is known to never waste any food, and she looks much older than her relatively young age.