Il Penseroso Quizzes

Il Penseroso Quiz

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

Penance

Melancholy

Mirth

Contemplation
2 What does the speaker reject at the beginning?

Melancholy

Fantasy

Vain deluding joys

Mirth
3 Who is Orpheus?

The goddess who guides "Il Penseroso"

One of the peasants the speaker sees in the fields

The Greek name for Melancholy

A shepherd who tried to lead his wife out of the underworld
4 What does the speaker argue in "Il Penseroso"?

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 sadness

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

While studying at Cambridge

As a small child

At the end of his career

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

It's unclear

No

Yes

There is no debate
7 How does "Il Penseroso" end?

With the speaker listening to birds in the forest

With the speaker listening to music at a church

With the speaker studying in a tower

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

An artistic temperment

A life of joy

Business

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

"L'Allegro"

"L'Alleger"

"Il Legro"

"Il Alleg"
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 study

That the best life to live is the life of silence
11 Which scene occurs in "Il Penseroso"?

The speaker entering the desert in search of solitude

The speaker guiding a lost traveler

The speaker listening to birds in the forest

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

University of London

Oxford

Cambridge

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

Orpheous

Hecuba

Zeus

Persephone
14 Which genre does Milton draw from in "Il Penseroso"?

History Play

Epic Poetry

Free verse

Classical hymn
15 Who does the speaker say gave birth to Melancholy?

Zephyr and Aurora

Saturn and Vesta

Zeus and Leda

Zeus and Hecuba
16 The speaker compares ___ to a lost traveler.

The sun

A star

The moon

A bird
17 Which scene takes place in "Il Penseroso"?

The speaker attends a party

The speaker writes a play

The speaker studies in a tower

The speaker travels to another country
18 Which genre does the speaker contemplate in the tower?

Tragedy

Dance

Music

Comedy
19 Where does the speaker go to sleep during the day?

By a pond

The shade

At the top of a mountain

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

Night

Music

Birds

Cries
21 Which work does the speaker allude to in "Il Penseroso"?

King Lear

Paradise Lost

The Canterbury Tales

Comus
22 The speaker calls a group of muses including ____.

Joy

Revelry

Quiet

Music
23 The speaker compares Melancholy to a ____.

Dancer

Teacher

Nun

Student
24 Melancholy walks with ___.

Galloping Gait

Reckless speed

Small steps

Even step
25 Where was Melancholy conceived?

In a marital bed

In secret shades

In the sky

At the top of a mountain

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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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