Essentially, this play is the story of Walter Lee Younger, sometimes called "Brother." Passionate, ambitious, and bursting with the energy of his dreams, Walter Lee is a desperate man, shackled by poverty and prejudice, and obsessed with a business idea that he thinks will solve all of his economic and social problems. He believes, for example, that through his business idea, he will suddenly accumulate all the money he will ever need. Then, with this sudden accumulation of capital, he will improve himself socially and will be looked up to by others — all the people who, he believes, do not think much of him as a man.
He will, he believes, finally be able to provide material necessities and even luxuries for his wife. Walter asks in desperation why shouldn't his wife wear pearls. Who decides, he wonders, which women should wear pearls in this world? However, Walter proves throughout the drama that he does not possess the entrepreneurial skills necessary to succeed in business. His education is sorely lacking, a fact made most clear in his confrontation with George Murchison. When George says, "Good night Prometheus," Walter not only does not know what "Prometheus" refers to, but he actually thinks that George, just that moment, made up the word.
