This however was not the only problem that plagued the system as the prisons at this period in time were already "corrupt and insufficient". Throughout the rest of Dickens lifetime the system also underwent a number of other changes. Dickens became involved in these changes and reforms not only because it was a part of the society he had grown up in but also because of his personal experiences in the system. .
Dickens" family consisted of eight children and his mother and father; hence the family had to manage their finances effectively to survive. When Dickens was twelve years old things had eventually proved too much for the Dickens family to manage as Charles" father, John Dickens was imprisoned for debt at Marshlsea Prison. This altered Charles" life dramatically as the rest of his family was imprisoned with his father whilst Charles was forced to work at Warren's Blacking Factory to pay off his fathers debts. For Dickens this was a terrible period in his life as he had basically been removed from his family, with the exception of his visits to his family at the prison on the weekends. This lasted until he could find a place to move into that was closer to the prison and his family. The situation continued like this for about four months until Dickens could finish paying of his father's debt and it is one that has never left the mind of Dickens. "The prison haunted him like a passion." .
As Dickens grew older he sought to increase his knowledge in the legal world and was employed as a clerk at a lawyer's office and even became interested in becoming a magistrate. Dickens also became interested in penology, which was developed in 1838 by an American and basically looked at the treatment of convicts and capital punishment. Dickens began to see that the judicial and penal system was unfair, as he believed that the law really only supported those in the upper class of society.