Marlowe's passionate shepherd promises to give his nymph (assuming that
she is one) a "cap of flowers." Ralegh's reply also mentions "Thy cap."
Bill's joke about taking one's hat off reminds me of the garland that
naked Adam weaves for naked Eve in *Paradise Lost* just before his fall.
I have always thought that garland very erotic in the way it supplements
and maybe even compromises Eve's nakedness.
Someone (I think it was on a Barnfield website) has suggested that
the addressee of Marlowe's passionate shepherd is really a boy (since
Marlowe liked boys, and kirtles could be worn by males). I don't think
i believe this, but it is an interesting argument.
John Leonard
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