Wanted
Black Larsen burns his wanted posters when we are first introduced to him. The image shows us clearly that this man is dangerous and foreshadows The Tramp will have to deal with not knowing his identity as they meet in the cabin for the first time.
Climbing the Trail
Chaplin shoots a long line of people walking and climbing the trail up a mountain in order to find gold. The imagery shows us people of a lower class seeking a higher life in a quite literal picture on screen, and it depicts the theme of people seeking a higher way of life through the gold rush in a tangible way.
Bird
Chaplin shoots the chicken sequence between The Tramp and McKay by superimposing a chicken over The Tramp and cutting between the chicken and The Tramp. It shows the back and forth insanity of someone who is in the midst of incredible hunger, and how the mind tricks itself into seeing what it wants.
Loneliness
The Tramp walks into the Monte Carlo Dance Hall to be surrounded by people, but ignored by them. The image of him standing beneath the framing of the hall with his cane bent from leaning on it shows how completely isolated the man is even in a room full of people.
