All This, and Heaven Too (1940) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

The film takes place primarily in Paris, France during the late Orleans monarchy of the 1830s-1840s. Paris is depicted as a glamorous but rigid society where social gossip and class expectations determine people's fates. The story also briefly references an American girls school in the United States.

Foreshadowing: The Parisian setting establishes the rigid social constraints that ultimately drive the tragic events.

• paris
• france
• 1830s
• 1840s
• orleans monarchy
• setting

The story is set in the 1830s-1840s, during the final years of the Orleans monarchy in France. This was a period of political tension combined with opulent yet strictly hierarchical social norms, where personal desires had to be subordinated to public perception.

Foreshadowing: The historical setting explains why reputation and social standing were matters of life and death.

• 1830s
• 1840s
• orleans monarchy
• france
• historical period

The central theme is love versus duty, exploring how private affection clashes with social obligations in the rigid aristocratic code. Henriette's warmth toward the children and her relationship with the Duke illustrate the cost of pursuing love within a world where personal desires must contend with public propriety.

Foreshadowing: This theme builds throughout the film as characters choose between their hearts and their positions.

• love
• duty
• aristocracy
• social obligations
• theme

Gossip and perception become powerful forces that shape destinies. Rumors and forged letters influence the court's view of Henriette, while the Duchess manipulates narratives to protect her status. The film critiques how class privilege can shield the guilty and condemn the innocent based on reputation rather than facts.

Foreshadowing: The Duchess's manipulation of gossip sets the tragedy in motion.

• gossip
• reputation
• class
• society
• manipulation

Henriette Deluzy-Desportes is a French governess hired to teach the children of Duc de Praslin. Her warmth wins the affection of the Praslin children and their father, but she becomes the target of vicious gossip fed by the Duchess. Her integrity and grace are tested as a murder investigation unfolds, making her the emotional center of the story.

Foreshadowing: Henriette's caring nature is established early, making her later persecution more tragic.

• henriette deluzy
• governess
• main character
• role

The Duc de Praslin is a privileged French aristocrat torn between his love for Henriette and his social duties. He confronts his wife about her behavior, an act that contributes to the tragedy that follows. He refuses to publicly acknowledge his feelings and ultimately poisons himself to avoid a public confession, leaving the case unresolved.

Foreshadowing: His internal conflict and ultimate choice to die rather than speak reveal the power of the aristocratic code.

• duc de praslin
• duke
• aristocrat
• love interest

The Duchesse de Praslin is the temperamental, jealous wife of the Duke. She resents Henriette from the moment she arrives and stirs jealousy while scheming to control the family's narrative. She withholds support and invents letters to manipulate others, fueling the conflict and social ruin that engulfs the household.

Foreshadowing: The Duchess's jealousy and manipulation are established in the opening scenes.

• duchesse de praslin
• duchess
• antagonist
• jealousy

The film explores truth versus rumor, showing how factual truth clashes with the narratives people want to believe. Rumor spreads quickly through royal circles, shaping how events are interpreted. The murder case hinges on evidence rather than confession, highlighting how justice can depend on circumstance when power and prejudice obscure facts.

Foreshadowing: The film's ambiguous ending reflects the theme that truth often loses to reputation.

• truth
• justice
• rumor
• court
• ambiguity

The film has a dark, serious tone driven by themes of jealousy, manipulation, and fatal consequences. However, it avoids being bleak by offering a hopeful future for Henriette. The ending is bittersweet, while Henriette is vindicated and offered a new life, it comes at the cost of the Duke's death and the destruction of the family she cared for.

Foreshadowing: The film's steady pacing builds emotional pressure toward the inevitable tragic climax.

• tone
• emotional
• dark
• tragedy
• bittersweet