The libertine is a central figure in seventeenth- and eighteenth-century poetry, embodying philosophical scepticism, sensual freedom, and moral transgression. Poets invoked libertines to explore pleasure, rebellion, and the limits of social order. The term often carries ambivalence, mixing admiration for intellectual independence with anxiety about corruption, excess, and spiritual emptiness in a changing moral landscape.

Libertine is both philosophical and moral, linked to debates about freedom, pleasure, and belief. In poetry, libertines often articulate seductive arguments against restraint, making them rhetorically powerful. Poets use the term to explore desire’s allure and cost. It is essential for understanding Restoration and Enlightenment poetry concerned with ethics and scepticism.