Trapped

Scotty Weems (Weems for short) is the narrator and main character of Trapped. Weems narrates the story as if looking back on the events and frequently foreshadows tragic or major events as the story progresses. Weems is a basketball player, the singular characteristic he uses to define himself at the book’s outset. When it looks like school will let out early due to the storm, Weems is upset because it means “all those hours of practice I’d put in” (6) toward basketball would go unrewarded. Weems puts the kids he goes to school with into categories, much like his own identification as a basketball player. For example, Krista is a hot girl, and Elijah is creepy. In the beginning, Weems doesn’t look past the roles he assigns to others. By the end, he realizes labels don’t matter or define people, one of the book’s major themes.

Weems is an underdog hero. Once it’s clear the group is trapped inside the school, Weems’s goal for the majority of the book is to survive until someone can rescue them. Rather than trying to lead or be smart, Weems lets Jason supply information he’s gained from his survival research and construction-worker dad. Weems experiences moments of jealousy where he wishes he sounded smart, but he shrugs them off.