If I had any sympathy for the people who Steerpike killed then perhaps I would hate his character. As it is, he kills people who think that they are better than him because they are upper class, whereas he came from the kitchens (Slagg, Flay, Master of Ritual) and people who care more about power or books than they do about their own families (Sepulchrave Groan and his sisters).
I see Steerpike's actions as intended to attack the institution rather than individuals - he says at one point that he thought that the ruling classes were stronger than him, but that he has realised that actually they are weak. This illustrates the fact that Steerpike at first saw his actions as justified because he didn't consider his murders to be attacks on people, but attacks on the system - wholly political. Then, right near the end of the film, he began to think that he may have been wrong, and that the people he killed weren't any more deserving of murder than anyone else - most poor people would behave like the Groans if they had been born into the ruling classes. Perhaps Steerpike began to think that the people of the aristocracy were victims of the system themselves. However, by that time it was far too late for him to change what he had done.
His acts are despicable, but I think that I would only start to hate him if he killed Titus, who is really the only upper class character who seems to be completely just and good. Steerpike never even tries to kill Titus until Titus attacks him. Although Steerpike starts off as a 'good' character and gradually becomes more and more corrupt, I don't think that he ever really crosses the line into villainy before his death, so I see him as more of an anti-hero than a villain.
The fact that by the very end of the story Titus understands - even agrees with - Steerpike's view that he should have been born in Titus' place shows that Steerpike's motivation was justified, even if his actions weren't; because Titus is unarguably a good character, his agreement with Steerpike shows that Steerpike's view of the system was not evil in itself, even if his actions were. Therefore, I believe that Steerpike has not necessarily lost the sympathy of the audience by the end of the story.
Wow, when I started answering your question I didn't think it would turn into an essay - sorry about that.
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