Stars
Early on in the play, Helena laments her love for Bertram and her social status, which is less prominent than Bertram's status as a nobleman. She compares Bertram to a star that does not occupy the same planetary sphere as she does. This astronomical imagery was not an uncommon way to describe lovers in the early modern drama, and Helena in many ways speaks about her unrequited love through what were, at the time, common poetic tropes.
Flowers
Characters often make use of flower imagery – buds, roses, thorns, etc. – in the play in order to euphemistically discuss women's virginity. This repeated imagery of a flower that is "plucked" before it is in full bloom suggests that a woman's loss of virginity is detrimental to her personhood. The frequency with which this imagery appears also highlights the preoccupation that the characters have with policing female sexuality.
Bertram's Scar
Bertram's scar becomes an important image when he returns from Italy. Lafeu thinks Bertram has the scar because he fought nobly in war, and paints Bertram as a war hero who should be celebrated. Lavatch, by contrast, points out that the scar is similar to what would be left behind from the venereal disease syphilis. Crucially, the audience never discovers the true origins of the scar, and as such Shakespeare encourages viewers to see Bertram as both a noble fighter and a disloyal husband.
Fathers' Faces
There is a lot of talk throughout the play of the similarities between Bertram and his late father. When the King greets Bertram in Paris, he tells him that he looks exactly like his father. The King means this as a compliment, of course, but the imagery draws the audience's attention to the similarities – and more importantly, the differences – Bertram might have with his noble father. Despite their having the same face, Bertram strays from his father's honorable reputation when he rejects Helena and pursues extramarital affairs in Italy.
