Il Penseroso Quizzes

Il Penseroso Quiz

1 Who does the speaker choose as his guide in "Il Penseroso?"
Penance

Mirth

Contemplation

Melancholy
2 What does the speaker reject at the beginning?
Melancholy

Mirth

Vain deluding joys

Fantasy
3 Who is Orpheus?
The goddess who guides "Il Penseroso"

One of the peasants the speaker sees in the fields

A shepherd who tried to lead his wife out of the underworld

The Greek name for Melancholy
4 What does the speaker argue in "Il Penseroso"?
That the best life to live is the life of sadness

That the best life to live is the life of contemplation

That the best life to live is the life of politics

That the best life to live is the life of joy
5 When did Milton likely write "Il Penseroso"?
At the end of his career

While studying at Cambridge

As a small child

In the middle of his political career
6 Does the speaker in "Il Penseroso" win the debate?
It's unclear

No

There is no debate

Yes
7 How does "Il Penseroso" end?
With the speaker finding a friend

With the speaker listening to birds in the forest

With the speaker studying in a tower

With the speaker listening to music at a church
8 During the Renaissance, people associated Melancholy with ____
A life of joy

An artistic temperment

Festivals

Business
9 What is the name of the companion poem to "Il Penseroso"?
"Il Alleg"

"Il Legro"

"L'Alleger"

"L'Allegro"
10 What does the speaker argue for in "L'Allegro"?
That the best life to live is the life in business

That the best life to live is the life of silence

That the best life to live is the life of study

That the best life to live is the life of joy
11 Which scene occurs in "Il Penseroso"?
The speaker listening to birds in the forest

The speaker entering the desert in search of solitude

The speaker guiding a lost traveler

The speaker attending the theater to listen to Shakespeare
12 Where did Milton attend school?
Cambridge

Harvard

University of London

Oxford
13 Which character from Greek mythology does the speaker allude to in "Il Penseroso"?
Persephone

Orpheous

Zeus

Hecuba
14 Which genre does Milton draw from in "Il Penseroso"?
Classical hymn

Epic Poetry

Free verse

History Play
15 Who does the speaker say gave birth to Melancholy?
Zeus and Hecuba

Zeus and Leda

Zephyr and Aurora

Saturn and Vesta
16 The speaker compares ___ to a lost traveler.
The sun

A star

A bird

The moon
17 Which scene takes place in "Il Penseroso"?
The speaker studies in a tower

The speaker travels to another country

The speaker writes a play

The speaker attends a party
18 Which genre does the speaker contemplate in the tower?
Music

Tragedy

Comedy

Dance
19 Where does the speaker go to sleep during the day?
At the top of a mountain

The shade

By a pond

In the sunlight
20 After taking a nap, the speaker wakes to ___.
Music

Cries

Night

Birds
21 Which work does the speaker allude to in "Il Penseroso"?
King Lear

Paradise Lost

Comus

The Canterbury Tales
22 The speaker calls a group of muses including ____.
Revelry

Quiet

Music

Joy
23 The speaker compares Melancholy to a ____.
Dancer

Teacher

Nun

Student
24 Melancholy walks with ___.
Galloping Gait

Even step

Small steps

Reckless speed
25 Where was Melancholy conceived?
In a marital bed

In secret shades

At the top of a mountain

In the sky

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Study Guide for Il Penseroso

Il Penseroso study guide contains a biography of John Milton, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

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