The Mousetrap

The Mousetrap argues for the care and protection of the most vulnerable members of society, including people who are cast out to the fringes of their communities or neglected, abused, and forgotten. Among the guests at Monkswell Manor, Christopher Wren is quickly singled out and derided for his odd behavior. He’s called “peculiar,” “unbalanced,” and “singularly ill-mannered and neurotic.” Giles Ralston accuses him of murder so forcefully that Christopher feels like he’s being persecuted. In contrast to her husband, Mollie Ralston treats Christopher kindly. She listens to him and protects him against the unearned hostility that other people direct at him. In the end, Christopher’s innocence is proven, showing that Giles was wrong to mistreat Christopher based solely on his assumptions about the young man. Thus, the play promotes Mollie’s compassionate attitude over Giles’s judgmental one. Christopher is indeed a vulnerable young man: he lost his mother as a child, he was bullied throughout school, and he suffered during his time in the army. His unhappiness shouldn’t be met with scorn. Instead, Christopher deserves the sympathy and understanding that Mollie offers him. Through Christopher’s example, the play demonstrates that care, compassion, and protection ought to be extended to everyone, not only to the people who are deemed likeable or who conform to certain social expectations.

The Mousetrap goes a step further in emphasizing the importance of compassion by allowing audiences to sympathize with Georgie Corrigan, the young man disguised as Detective Sergeant Trotter. He’s the eldest of the three children who were abused in the Longridge Farm case, and he commits two murders by the end of Act 1. The play doesn’t excuse Georgie’s crimes, but it does provide insights into the suffering Georgie underwent as a child, which in turn offers some understanding as to why he chooses to seek such violent retribution. Crucially, the play’s ending doesn’t glorify Georgie’s capture or celebrate the idea of him receiving a harsh punishment. Instead, it depicts Georgie’s sister, Kathy Corrigan (or Miss Casewell), reuniting with him and promising to take him somewhere he’ll be cared for. Ultimately, Georgie Corrigan still deserves to be cared for—not further abused—just as the young Corrigan children deserved to be cared for and protected by compassionate guardians. Overall, the play encourages not the condemnation of outcasts and criminals but the care and protection of everyone in society, especially vulnerable youth and victims of ill-treatment.