The Politics of Obedience and Etienne De La Boetie

The **Discourse on Voluntary Servitude** (French: *Discours de la servitude volontaire*) is a work attributed to Étienne de La Boétie by Montaigne. The text was published clandestinely in 1577.

The date of preparation of the *Discourse on Voluntary Servitude* is uncertain: according to recent studies it was composed by Étienne de La Boétie during his university education. According to his closest friend Michel de Montaigne, the speech was written when La Boétie was about 18 years old.