Shakespeare uses the image of dead or dying children in powerfully ironic ways to undermine the power of the Macbeths’ from the very beginning. Consider the first use of the image in the play when Lady Macbeth urges her husband to forcibly acquire power by talking about how she would, without hesitation, slaughter their heir. That Macbeth takes this bait and kills King Duncan shows that he is not worthy of the power he seizes. The very fact that the Macbeths have no heir also makes their reign inherently unstable as it raises the issue of succession. There is a reason that Shakespeare raises the issue of succession and that reason is that it was a very contentious problem at the time. But, it is the complete lack of a moral compass, displayed
