Il Penseroso Quizzes

Il Penseroso Quiz

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

Mirth

Melancholy

Contemplation
2 What does the speaker reject at the beginning?
Fantasy

Vain deluding joys

Melancholy

Mirth
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 joy

That the best life to live is the life of politics

That the best life to live is the life of contemplation

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

At the end of his career

In the middle of his political career

While studying at Cambridge
6 Does the speaker in "Il Penseroso" win the debate?
Yes

No

There is no debate

It's unclear
7 How does "Il Penseroso" end?
With the speaker listening to birds in the forest

With the speaker finding a friend

With the speaker studying in a tower

With the speaker listening to music at a church
8 During the Renaissance, people associated Melancholy with ____
Festivals

An artistic temperment

Business

A life of joy
9 What is the name of the companion poem to "Il Penseroso"?
"L'Allegro"

"Il Alleg"

"L'Alleger"

"Il Legro"
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 study

That the best life to live is the life of silence

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 guiding a lost traveler

The speaker entering the desert in search of solitude

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

Oxford

University of London

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

Hecuba

Zeus

Orpheous
14 Which genre does Milton draw from in "Il Penseroso"?
Free verse

Classical hymn

History Play

Epic Poetry
15 Who does the speaker say gave birth to Melancholy?
Saturn and Vesta

Zeus and Leda

Zeus and Hecuba

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

The moon

A star

A bird
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?
Tragedy

Music

Comedy

Dance
19 Where does the speaker go to sleep during the day?
In the sunlight

The shade

By a pond

At the top of a mountain
20 After taking a nap, the speaker wakes to ___.
Night

Cries

Birds

Music
21 Which work does the speaker allude to in "Il Penseroso"?
The Canterbury Tales

King Lear

Comus

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

Joy

Music

Quiet
23 The speaker compares Melancholy to a ____.
Nun

Dancer

Student

Teacher
24 Melancholy walks with ___.
Reckless speed

Small steps

Even step

Galloping Gait
25 Where was Melancholy conceived?
In a marital bed

At the top of a mountain

In secret shades

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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