Augustine of Hippo is both the author of On Free Choice of the Will and the persona within it who carries out philosophical dialogues. Augustine is an influential and well-known figure in Western history thanks to the large volume of his writings that have been preserved. Born in Tagaste (in the region now known as Souk-Ahras on the northern coast of Algeria) in 354, Augustine was born to moderately wealthy parents, Patricius and Monica. After receiving a Christian education, as an adolescent he was sent to Carthage, where he lived a morally dissolute lifestyle while progressing academically.

At about the same time, Augustine fell in with the Manicheans, a religious sect that taught spiritual dualism. He was part of this group for the greater part of a decade, until he met the bishop Ambrose in the early 380’s. Enraptured by Ambrose’s brilliance and rhetorical persuasion, Augustine began to reconsider the teachings of his Christian upbringing. Augustine went on to be baptized, and several years later was ordained to the priesthood and eventually installed as bishop of Hippo in 396, at the age of 42. He acted as the bishop of Hippo for the next 34 years, until his death in 430 at the age of 76.