Siward and his son aren’t hugely important, but are useful points of reference for Macbeth’s violent cruelty in Act 5, as well as for the thematic concern of fathers and sons. Siward is King Duncan’s brother and so is one of the men who join with Malcolm in taking up arms against Macbeth. He also expresses his enthusiasm for his son Young Siward to experience the battle given that he is not yet a man (i.e. a teenager). Tragically, Young Siward is killed in Act 5 Scene 7 when he bravely charges Macbeth, renouncing him as an “abhorred tyrrant.” This is yet another example of Macbeth slaying a child, and as explained on page 46, another instance in which Macbeth destroys a father/son relationship by killing someone and leaving another to grieve their loss.
