The Horrifying Description of Ignorance and Want
You'll immediately notice how Dickens describes these children - they're "yellow, meagre, ragged, scowling, wolfish". These aren't just random descriptive words; they're carefully chosen to make you feel sorry for them whilst showing how terrible their situation is.
The words "scowling" and "wolfish" are particularly important because they compare the children to wild animals. This suggests that poverty has stripped away their humanity - they've been forced to behave like beasts just to survive.
When Dickens writes that "a stale and shrivelled hand, like that of age, had pinched and twisted them," he's showing how poverty has aged them before their time. These children represent all poor children in Victorian England, and Dickens chose children deliberately because adults often ignore or overlook young people's suffering.
Quick Tip: Remember that these children are allegories - they represent bigger ideas about society's problems, not just individual characters.