A Dull Court
After the King and the other men sign the oath, they commit to avoiding women altogether. Almost immediately, the court becomes dark, silent, and rather boring. The absence of women, the play suggests, therefore does not only affect the men of the play but also the environment in which they find themselves. Consequently, the arrival of the Princess and her ladies introduces excitement and lightness to the otherwise drab court of Navarre.
Women and Light
When the Princess and her ladies arrive, Longaville describes one of the women in the Princess's entourage that caught his eye. He describes her as being drenched in light and having the power to illuminate the things around her. This image further emphasizes the notion that women introduce light, life, and excitement to the men's world.
Temptation
In the play, women are portrayed in two different ways: they are either angelic figures or temptresses capable of leading a man to his ruin. The image of women as temptresses appears in the beginning of the play, when the men try to convince themselves that giving up women will contribute to their scholarly progress. Their perception changes, however, as the play progresses and the men fall in love one by one with the women from the Princess's entourage.
Cupid
In Biron's soliloquy in which he laments his lovesick state, he dwells extensively on an image of Cupid as a military commander who has won a victory over another army (in this case, Biron). This description of Cupid is at odds with the traditional portrayals of the love god, who is often described as a mischievous young boy. Biron instead portrays Cupid as a ruthless martial power, endowing him with strength and power that is reflective of Biron's own state of vulnerability.
