The word 父子 is formed through the direct, meaningful combination of two pictographic characters: 父 (fù), which depicts a hand holding a tool or scepter, representing the authority and figure of a father, and 子 (zǐ), which pictographically resembles an infant with a large head and outstretched arms, representing a child or son. Placed together side-by-side, they do not describe an action but visually and conceptually juxtapose these two fundamental familial roles to create a single, compact unit that embodies the abstract relationship and inseparable bond between them, the concept of "father and son".