Macbeth Chapter Summary & Analysis - Act 4, Scene 2 Summary

Act 4, Scene 2 Summary

Lady Macduff enters with Ross, her cousin, and her son. She indicates that her husband's flight makes them look like traitors, joining the likes of Fleance, Malcolm and Donalbain, who also fled. She tells Ross that Macduff has cruelly abandoned her. Ross tells her she needs to be more schooled in her husband's ways. Macduff is, in fact, noble and wise. He takes his leave of her. She asks her son what will he do now that her father's dead. He tells her he will do as birds do- find what they need. Besides, he tells her, his father is not dead. As they banter, in a kind of jesting way, a messenger enters, warning them to leave. Murderers come and kill her son. After he dies, she runs, screaming for help.

Act 4, Scene 2 Analysis

This is a very tragic scene in which Lady Macduff voices her thought of abandonment by her husband....
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