When the son decides to return to his father's house, to ask his father to be received—no longer by virtue of his right as a son, but as an employee—at first sight he seems to be acting by reason of the hunger and poverty that he had fallen into; this motive, however, is permeated by an awareness of a deeper loss: to be a hired servant in his own father's house is certainly a great humiliation and source of shame.
When the son decides to return home, seeking employment rather than familial privilege, he initially appears driven by poverty and hunger. However, a deeper sense of loss underlies this motivation: being a hired servant in his father's house is a profound source of shame and humiliation.