Étienne de La Boétie

Étienne de La Boétie was born in 1530 in Sarlat, in the Périgord region of southwestern France, into an aristocratic family; his father was a royal official. Orphaned young, he was raised by his uncle, a priest. He took a law degree at the University of Orléans in 1553, and the following year, though under the usual age, he was appointed to the Parlement of Bordeaux, the high court of the region. As a young man, perhaps while still a student, he wrote the Discourse on Voluntary Servitude, which asks why so many people obey a single ruler, and argues that tyranny depends on the consent of those it rules and would collapse if they simply stopped supporting it. He also translated works by Xenophon and Plutarch and wrote poetry. In Bordeaux he became the close friend of Michel de Montaigne, who later wrote his famous essay On Friendship about him. La Boétie died of illness in 1563, aged 32, and the Discourse was later published by Huguenot writers.

Étienne de La Boétie is also an author in the library: author page and works.

Faith: Catholic; he favored reconciling Catholics and Protestants through church reform. Source: Wikipedia