Philippe Ferronaire is the youngest son of a plantation owner and is spoiled in his youth. He eventually marries a young woman named Aglae, who is the eldest daughter of a distant cousin and in doing so, he inherits a large plantation called Bontemps. He tries very hard to follow the instructions left to him on how to run the plantation but feels as though he fails at every turn and this drives him to cruelty. In addition to this, Aglae seems to disrespect him frequently so he finds himself more comfortable and at home in the cottage of Cecile Ste. Marie. He is the father of her two children, Marcel and Marie. In all things, he appears to be a generous man to these children and to Cecile, but he actually steals the presents he provides them from his wife and her home. He also fathers another child, Lisette, with a slave woman from his parents' plantation, whom he gives to Cecile as a slave. He promises this child her freedom when she becomes of age and breaks the promise which leads to her mistreatment of Marie. He also has promised to send Marcel to Paris, which dominates the young man's mind. Later, he not only breaks the promise, but when the young Marcel appears on Bontemps to confront him, he treats him as a slave instead of his son.
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