Dante emphasizes sounds to portray the suffering the sinners have to go through for their crimes for staining the earth during their mortal times.

The result of mixing the classical imagery and the Christian symbolism of Hell is a powerful concoction of punishments for all sins and levels of each of these forbidden deadly sins.

I believe that Virgil's comments in 3.118-123 mean that once an individual has died, they are judged. This judgement then places them with a suitable punishment. For these "neutral" followers, they are to be forever punished with the desire to follow the banner in the endless winds. The banner that symbolizes a leader to follow. This leader that they failed to obey simply because they were self-interested individuals. Now, they yearn for someone to take them in to make them feel wanted and important, but they are shunned from the Blessed and even the Damned.

I believe Dante emphasizes the sounds to show that hell is not a peaceful or quiet place. The people there are suffering for they have sinned, and every punishment is real to the person being punished. Even though they are dead, their souls can feel the pain being torn through them, and they cry or scream or wail. The sounds emphasize the suffering, and Dante emphasizing the sounds also emphasizes the sufferings for the reader.

I think that Virgil's comments in 3.118-123 mean that the sinners here are yearning to be noticed. Virgil states "all who die in the shadow of God's wrath," which to me means that the people died in God's wrath unnoticed by God or by anyone. They were stuck in the shadow of the chaos that no one really noticed them. They are eager to pass over into a deeper level of hell because they will be noticed more, for they will be treated for their crime. Someone knows the crime they committed, which to them means someone noticed them. As scared as they are, they yearn for the attention and to finally be noticed, even if it is in hell, for one wish in their past life will be fulfilled.