The Queen (metaphor)
Elizabeth I was the queen of England at the time of the play’s actions. Throughout the text, a favorable and magnanimous attitude towards her is evident. She is called metaphorically “peerless Elizabeth”, “the mother of her people”, “our royal mistress”, “pure religion”, “liberty and laws”. By such poetic metaphors the love to the Queen is shown, but at the same time the people's love and their happiness are “her greatest glory”and “richest exchequer”, which proves that the Queen loved her people as well.
Thorowgood (metaphor)
The name of one of the main characters – Thorowgood – is a combination of two words: “through” and “good”. Thus his name means “good in every way” and bears a metaphorical meaning in the play.
A noble man (metaphor)
In his conversation with the daughter Thorowgood ponders over the meaning of the high birth and titles, and how these things contribute to a man’s decency and respectability. He says that “a noble birth and fortune make not a bad man good, yet they are a real advantage to a worthy one, and place his virtues in the fairest light.” The metaphor reveals social views of the time, as it was the time when a place in society and presence of a good genealogy made a person significant.
Wise Queen (metaphor)
The play develops a theme of politics being a cunning issue. The Queen Elizabeth successfully won the bank of Genoa over to the England's side. The bank of Genoa agreed to give a considerable sum of money the Spaniard king, who was the Queen’s the bitterest enemy, but Elizabeth’s wise dealing prevented this to happen. Her wise reasoning is admired in the play, and shows that she is not an orginary monarch, who “make the danger of foreign enemies a pretence to oppress their subjects by taxes great and grievous to be borne”.
