libertin

Libertin, in English usage often written as libertine, is a term that describes a person who pursues personal freedom, especially in matters of morality and sexuality, and who may reject conventional religious or social restraints. The word derives from Old French libertin, from Latin libertinus meaning a freedman or someone not bound by servitude, and it has come to emphasize a lifestyle of unrestrained pleasure-seeking and independent thought.

Historically, libertinage was a cultural and literary current in 17th- and 18th-century Europe, most closely associated with France. Libertines were linked to salons, wit, and a critical stance toward religious and political authority. The movement often involved secularism, skeptical jokes about traditional norms, and a disposition toward sensual experimentation. The term could be used pejoratively by moralists, but it also encompassed a wide range of attitudes toward freedom, virtue, and social hypocrisy. Notable associations include famous figures and works that shaped the stereotype of the libertine, and the broader tradition of erotic and philosophical literature of the period.

In modern usage, libertin (the French form) or libertine conveys a person who seeks pleasure with relatively little regard for conventional morality. The English form libertine remains common, and the concept appears in biographies, fiction, and film as a historical or literary archetype. Well-known figures often linked to libertinism include Casanova, Don Juan, and Marquis de Sade, though they represent varied strands within the broader tradition of libertinage and its evolving cultural reception.