The text is the beginning of the second chapter of Dickens' novel Oliver Twist. The text starts with the protagonist's characterization.
Differently from other novelist the reader can see the characterization is made up with a physical description (he looks pale, thin due to a spare diet), references of his age (Twist's ninth birthday) and of his social condition (he is poor, he works in the
coal-cellar). Besides the character is also described as good sturdy spirit that means he is a strong, vigorous boy in spirit. From the characterization the reader understands in Utilitarianism the identity is the result of social condition, origins and physical appearance.  The characterization as well as the following part, presents lots of adjectives and adverbs. In particular, adverbs are very important because they underline the narrator's distortion of the reality that allows the speaking voice to analyse the Victorian society and to criticize it.

After the characterization the speaking voice presents the scene: it is set in the dining hall. The characters are the children of the work-house, who are too hungry. The narrator underlines the children's hunger making an ironic comparison between it and the copper and ladled.  They both are very big but the bowl in which the festive composition was served are porringer that
means a very little bowl. The lunch described as an occasion of great public becomes a scene of starvation thanks to the use of hyperboles, when children are presented as animals: suffered the tortures of slow starvation, so voracious and wild with hunger, he might happen to eat the boy who slept next to him, hungry eye create an hyperbolic effect. 

The use of hyperboles as well as the use of repetitions creates the grotesque that makes the reader laugh but at the same time it creates an ironic scene, it creates distances but in particular it allows consciousness to return "clean".

After the descriptive scene there is a dialogue between Oliver and the master. Differently from the all children the master is characterized as a fat, wealth man. As a result, a great contrast is created between the two characters that culminated in Oliver's request for more food. The language used by Oliver is simple and direct; it is typical for a child.