Androgyny
Even before Moll’s first entrance, "in a frieze jerkin and a black safeguard"(2.1), the imagery associated with her is explicitly androgynous. Sir Alexander describes her as having "two shadows to one shape" (1.2), meaning that she has the spiritual presence of both a man and a woman, a point supported by Mistress Gallipot’s statement that "some will not stick to say she's a man and some both man and woman" (2.1). Moll herself seems to corroborate this, stating that "I love to lie a' both sides a' th' bed myself" (2.2) in defense of her unmarried status. Lying on both sides of the bed indicates that she sees herself in both roles of a marriage, acting out the gender roles of both husband and wife.
Sexuality
The sexual imagery in the text is often described in physical, violent terms. This is because Moll, who is chaste, is seen as sexually deviant due to her gender nonconformity. Laxton sees this as a challenge, stating that "I'll lay hard siege to her; money is that aqua fortis that eats into many a maidenhead: where the walls are flesh and blood, I'll ever pierce through with a golden auger" (2.1), clearly invoking violence as it relates to sexual activity. Moreover, Moll knows the violent ideals of the men in the play. She holds a low view of marriage and describes it as "a chopping and changing, where a maiden loses one head and has a worse i' th' place" (2.2). This not only calls to mind Henry VIII’s executions of Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard less than a hundred years before the play was performed, but also aligns the loss of Moll’s virginity (her maidenhead) with death. Moll is aware of the violence that surrounds her sexuality and that is why she eschews it in the final scene of the play, stating that she will only marry when there are "gallants void from sergeants' fear, honesty and truth unsland'red, woman mann'd but never pand'red" (5.2), a series of oxymorons that clearly demonstrate that she will never be married.
Animals
Animal imagery appears in the play most frequently in relation to women and their bodies. This technique is apparent when Moll replies to Laxton’s offer of a carriage with four horses with the retort "three horses will serve if I play the jade myself" (2.1). In this statement, "jade" is a double entendre meaning both an old horse and a prostitute, allying the two terms to double the wretchedness of the situation. Moll also reiterates this point in her later monologue when she describes women who turn to prostitution as "fish that must needs bite or themselves be bitten, such hungry things as these may soon be took with a worm fast'ned on a golden hook" (3.1). In this way, women are not demonized for turning to sex work. Moll is stating that their desperation makes the decision one of animal-like simplicity - either they take the bait and sell themselves, or they cannot survive.
Money
Due to Moll’s role as a thief, the imagery associated with money is of vital importance in The Roaring Girl. Money itself has no positive or negative connotations in the play; instead, it takes on the characteristics of the person who is using it. This is most clearly seen in the changing associations of the unit of currency referred to as an "angel," which was worth ten shillings. Dekker’s and Middleton’s use of the measurement is ironic because the positive associations of the word "angel" and Laxton’s proclamation that "there's ten angels in fair gold, Moll; you see I do not trifle with you" (2.1) lead the audience to see money in a positive light, before the writers change the imagery of the "angel" into something darker. This shift occurs when Sir Alexander gives Sebastian "four angels mark'd with holes in them" (4.1) in an attempt to catch Moll stealing. Thus, the associations of angels and money are soured; the money has turned "hollow-hearted" (5.2), an evil that cannot be rectified until Sir Alexander mends his ways and offers to "thrice double [the money]" (5.2).
