Because of this, he also has to run to the same dead-end job every day. Walter despises having to go to his job just to struggle to support his family. This is evident through his deriding of his job. Walter says, "I got to change my life, I"m choking to death, baby! (Hansberry 1.1.482) George Murchison even notices his bitterness for his life when he tells Walter that he is "whacked up with bitterness" (Hansberry 2.1.506). Walter loathes his job because it reminds him that he cannot escape his position in life. He is frustrated in his "invisibility" in a white society (Cheney 63).
Walter is also a sympathetic character because he only wants to take care of his family. The reason Walter wants to invest in the liquor store is because it could generate enough money for the family. Whenever he talks of his dreams he always includes the other family members. Also, when Walter is telling Travis about his dreams he says, "We"ll [Walter and Ruth] go up to you room to see you sitting on the floor with the catalogues of all the great schools in America around you . All the great schools in the world!" (Hansberry 2.1.518). He is also a very caring father this noticeable when he gives Travis money in the first Act of the play. He also shows his pride for his son when he looks at Ruth and says, "That's MY boy" (Hansberry 1.1.481). Walter sincerely only wishes the best for his family.
The reader also sympathizes for Walter because the family members are always putting him down and discouraging him. This is evident in his first dialogue with Ruth in the play. Walter cannot even get his eggs scrambled like he wants them. After Ruth complains about Walter talking with his friends late at night. Walter replies, "The things I want to talk about with my friends just couldn't be important in you mind, could they?" (Hansberry 1.1.478) Walter feels as if no one wants to help him or uplift him. He shows these feelings by telling Ruth, "that is just what is wrong with the colored woman in this world Don't understand about building their men up and making "em feel like they somebody.