Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Second Shepherd’s Play, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Earthly vs. Spiritual
Christian Charity
Suffering and Redemption
Song as a Means for Transformation
Summary
Analysis
Mak returns to his hut from the fields. Beginning to feel nervous, Mak tells Gill that the shepherds will immediately suspect him when they realize one of their sheep is missing. Gill is unruffled, confident that their plan to disguise the sheep as a newborn baby will go over smoothly. She points out that even if their plan was more complex and dangerous, she would still be able to help Mak pull it off.
Preparing for the shepherds’ imminent arrival, Gill tells Mak to sing a lullaby to the swaddled sheep while she groans in fake postpartum pain.
Gill once again authoritatively directs the plans and reveals herself to be the real mastermind in the scheme and the marriage. She adds another layer to her already-clever plan by demanding Mak sing a lullaby to make the birth seem more believable.
Themes
