In 4.2, Lady Macduff bewails her husband's desertion of home and family, then falsely tells her son that his father is dead.

Macbeth's henchmen arrive, and, when they declare Macduff a traitor, the boy leaps forward to defend his absent father.

[4] One scholar views the scene as parallel to the Massacre of the Innocents, in which Herod had the children of Bethlehem killed to protect his throne.

The boy's innocent image is strengthened by his mother calling him "poor monkey" and a "prattler".

Macduff's son, in his bold denunciation of the murderers, is a strong symbol of the danger Macbeth faces.

Paradoxically, the more Macbeth tries to rid himself of the human emotions (compassion, love) that lead to children, the less capable he is of meeting this threat and controlling his future.