Madeleine Lebeau, a woman who charges for her easy virtue, has a plan that has some of her customers paying more than others; she tells them she is pregnant and, to avoid complications, the men pay her money and don't hang around for the birth. Yves Furet, a shiftless gambler, who not only encourages her in her business ventures but is also her fiancée, shares the fruit of her non-labor. She latches onto a wealthy widower, Henri Vilbert, who throws her a curve-ball when, after she tells him she is pregnant, he is overjoyed as he has fallen in love with her and is looking forward to becoming a father. She plays along for a while, but becomes ashamed when she sees how Vilbert is devoting his whole life to a child that she isn't carrying. She fakes a miscarriage and his kindness makes her feel guilty and she confesses, but he doesn't believe her. So she tries another plan.
Hippolyte (Bourvil) es un tonto de treinta años, de mente infantil, ingenuo, que vive en un pueblo de Normandía (Courteville, a 35 kms de Evreux). Cuando muere su tío Celestino, le deja en herencia su fortuna y su albergue (Le Trou Normand), pero sólo a condición de que pase su certificado de graduación en un año. Para lograr su objetivo, debe enfrentarse a las maquinaciones de su tía Agustina, quien quiere heredar en su lugar y trata de hacerlo fracasar utilizando a su hija Javotte (Brigitte Bardot). Él tiene el apoyo de muchos aldeanos, incluyendo al alcalde, al maestro de escuela, y especialmente a la hija de éste, también maestra de escuela, de la que se enamorará Hippolyte.
The life of a weak-willed man is thrust into a downward spiral by the scheming of his manipulative girlfriend and her mother.
