The Narrator is a young French man traversing a desolate region of Provence just before the outbreak of World War I. Highly observant and sensitive to his surroundings, he notes the misery of the area's few inhabitants. His solitary hiking trip leads him to an unexpected encounter with a local shepherd. He carries a quiet emotional weight from his military service, finding deep solace and healing in the natural world rather than in human society.

Elzéard Bouffier is a fifty-year-old shepherd living in an isolated, well-maintained stone house in the uplands of Provence. A former farmer who lost his wife and only son, he channels his quiet grief into a massive, solitary tree-planting project. He speaks very little and works with meticulous dedication, sorting and planting hundreds of acorns daily. He completely ignores the outside world, focusing only on the steady growth of his forest.