English Literature / Unit 9 ENL 0802 short lesson, about 20 seconds
"L'Allegro" and "Il Penseroso"
Captions available
The idea
Milton's paired pastoral poems, published in his Poems of sixteen forty-five, describe two ideal days. "L'Allegro," the happy man, banishes "loathed Melancholy" and invokes Mirth for a cheerful, active country day. "Il Penseroso," the thinker, dismisses "vain deluding Joys" and invokes "divinest Melancholy" for contemplation.
In practice
Mirth by day, Melancholy by night.
Where people slip
Read them as a matched pair.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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