Hail thou goddess, sage and holy
Hail divinest melancholy
Written as a companion piece to L’Allegro, this poem focuses on the pleasures of contemplation and wistfulness. L’Allegro follows its narrator through a day of celebrations and exuberance and finds greatness there; Il Penseroso follows its narrator through a quiet night of meditation and peace and finds greatness there as well. I found Il Penseroso to be the better of the two, the more atmospheric and beautiful. It’s probable that every reader finds the one that most corresponds to their personal temperament to be the best of the two, if I had to guess, so I wouldn’t go the mat with anybody over which one they prefer. 3 stars.
tl;dr – companion piece to L’Allegro is quieter and more melancholy; I think this one’s better, but that’s probably mainly because it aligns with my temperament more than L’Allegro. 3 stars.