Meaning of 小せェもんに縛られてる

Question

Context: in a flashback, a Cuban boxer is thinking back to when he was in Cuba before seeking asylum (亡命) and migrating to America. He had just won a gold medal for his country in the Olympics.

国のためとか…　小せェもんに縛られてるから底辺止まりなんだよ　凡人共が

My literal translation attempt is:

For their country, ordinary people remain in the lower classes because they are bound by little things.

What is the meaning of 小せェもんに縛られてる? I understand the literal meaning, but what is he actually referring to? Is this some kind of metaphor I am not getting?

Thank you for your help!

Answer 1

This 小せえもん ("trivial things") is a paraphrase of 国のため(とか). It's read like trivial things such as "for our country" or "For our country"... such trivial things. In other words, this guy is making light of petty nationalism, and seeing something even bigger than Cuba.

EDIT: In case you missed it, this が after 凡人共 is a derogatory vocative-like particle, e.g., "この馬鹿者が!" = "You idiot!" It's also working as the implied subject of 縛られてる and 底辺止まり, though.