The United States was in a period of economic depression in the 1920s, with high unemployment rates and workers being squeezed and becoming a screw in the production of large machines. Charlie (Charles Chaplin) is a low-level citizen who works day and night in a factory with rumbling machines to earn a meager income. The repetitive and heavy work made him breathless. He twisted people's noses as screws and rolled them into the belts of the assembly line machines, which made people laugh bitterly. Although Charlie was poor, he was very kind. He rescued a homeless woman on the road and lived with her. His home was shabby but warm. Every time Charlie, who was penniless, wanted to find food, he would deliberately commit crimes in order to enter prison. The situation improved for a while, and the homeless woman became a singing and dancing star, but the good times were too short.