Il Penseroso Quizzes

Il Penseroso Quiz

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

Melancholy

Mirth

Penance
2 What does the speaker reject at the beginning?
Mirth

Vain deluding joys

Fantasy

Melancholy
3 Who is Orpheus?
A shepherd who tried to lead his wife out of the underworld

The goddess who guides "Il Penseroso"

The Greek name for Melancholy

One of the peasants the speaker sees in the fields
4 What does the speaker argue in "Il Penseroso"?
That the best life to live is the life of joy

That the best life to live is the life of contemplation

That the best life to live is the life of sadness

That the best life to live is the life of politics
5 When did Milton likely write "Il Penseroso"?
As a small child

In the middle of his political career

At the end of his career

While studying at Cambridge
6 Does the speaker in "Il Penseroso" win the debate?
No

It's unclear

There is no debate

Yes
7 How does "Il Penseroso" end?
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

With the speaker finding a friend
8 During the Renaissance, people associated Melancholy with ____
Festivals

A life of joy

Business

An artistic temperment
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 joy

That the best life to live is the life of silence

That the best life to live is the life of study
11 Which scene occurs in "Il Penseroso"?
The speaker attending the theater to listen to Shakespeare

The speaker entering the desert in search of solitude

The speaker guiding a lost traveler

The speaker listening to birds in the forest
12 Where did Milton attend school?
University of London

Harvard

Cambridge

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

Persephone

Zeus

Hecuba
14 Which genre does Milton draw from in "Il Penseroso"?
History Play

Free verse

Classical hymn

Epic Poetry
15 Who does the speaker say gave birth to Melancholy?
Zeus and Leda

Saturn and Vesta

Zeus and Hecuba

Zephyr and Aurora
16 The speaker compares ___ to a lost traveler.
The sun

A bird

A star

The moon
17 Which scene takes place in "Il Penseroso"?
The speaker travels to another country

The speaker writes a play

The speaker studies in a tower

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

Tragedy

Comedy

Music
19 Where does the speaker go to sleep during the day?
The shade

In the sunlight

At the top of a mountain

By a pond
20 After taking a nap, the speaker wakes to ___.
Night

Music

Cries

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

The Canterbury Tales

Comus

Paradise Lost
22 The speaker calls a group of muses including ____.
Revelry

Music

Joy

Quiet
23 The speaker compares Melancholy to a ____.
Teacher

Dancer

Student

Nun
24 Melancholy walks with ___.
Small steps

Reckless speed

Even step

Galloping Gait
25 Where was Melancholy conceived?
In secret shades

At the top of a mountain

In the sky

In a marital bed

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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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