One character who is presented as trapped is George. From the immediate beginning Steinbeck evokes the idea George is trapped by Lennie and the fact that he must look after Lennie. George says ‘the small time I could have without you. I go nuts.’ Here, George expresses from the very beginning that he feels trapped by the idea of looking after Lennie and he thinks of his life without Lennie constantly and how different it would be.
As a result of feeling trapped, George sets a dream with Lennie that he and Lennie wish to fulfil. The dream, a recurring theme in ‘Of mice and men’ keeps the two men going despite the fact the dream is immediately known to be unattainable by Steinbeck’s symbolism. Rabbits are at the very centre of the dream and they are constantly talked about by the two men. Rabbits, in spite of this, seem to avoid the men which symbolises the dream is running away from the men, if not unattainable. The rabbits, in chapter one are used as symbols for the dream and are described as ‘stones’. This is very effective as the dream is suggested to be frozen. This is then followed by the fact the rabbits ‘hurried’ away from the clearing as the men emerge into the novel. The rabbits, therefore, the dream are presented immobile and unachievable. The fact that his dream is unattainable also traps George because George subconsciously knows the dream will never be fulfilled which he explores at the end of the novel.
Further, George plays solitaire, a one player game whenever talking to Lennie about the dream suggesting Lennie is a burden and George would rather fulfil the dream solitary on his own. As a result of feeling trapped, George overall distances himself from Lennie and continuously dreams about being alone and fulfilling the dream he has always wanted to.
Another character which is presented trapped is Crooks because of his race. This leaves crooks volatile and precautious. When Lennie enters Crooks barn, Crooks immediately lashes out at Lennie and exclaims ‘you have no right to come in my room’. Clearly,
Crooks is volatile because of his race and the situation which was in America at the time. Further, Crooks expresses the clear divide and says he can’t play cards because ‘I’m black’. Crook is forced to stay away from the other characters on the ranch and is forced to socialise with nobody. Ultimately, I believe the characters which are ‘trapped’ the most are Crooks and George.