In Shakespeare's Macbeth, the lines
you ask about are from Act 1.5, while Duncan is king of Scotland. These lines are
spoken before Macbeth kills King Duncan.
Duncan, in fact,
has just named Malcolm Earl of Cumberland, which is the same as naming Malcolm
his heir. The line of succession for the throne of Scotland at this point, should
something happen to Duncan, the present king, is Malcolm, Duncan's eldest son,
Donaldbain, Duncan's other son, and, then, apparently, Macbeth, as the most celebrated
warrior in Scotland.
The witches have predicted that
Macbeth will be king. If this is to happen soon, then Macbeth will have to step over,
figuratively, Malcolm, since he is Duncan's heir. Macbeth is speaking metaphorically.
Malcolm is compared to an obstacle that Macbeth will have to step over in order to be
king. The obstacle will either stop Macbeth, or Macbeth can leap over it and achieve
his goal--the throne of Scotland.
No deep or convoluted
interpretation is needed here. Macbeth simply uses a metaphor to reveal Malcolm as an
obstacle to his achieving the throne. It's just a simple metaphor, used by Macbeth
before he is king to reveal what he will have to do to become king, in addition to
killing King Duncan. The obstacle, figuratively, ends up removing itself, when Malcolm
and Donaldbain both flee Scotland after their father is killed. Their flight leaves
Macbeth next in line for the throne.
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