Abstract: In the novel The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald uses symbolism to reveal the theme of his novel. Symbolism has been widely used in literature writing since 19th century through which the writers can express the subject of his works, make the characters and their psychology enriched and vivid, and finally reveal its real theme. This article aims to analyze the symbolic technique in The Great Gatsby. 

The first part is introduction, which briefly introduces the novel and the writer. The second part elaborates the symbols in The Great Gatsby, including color, object, natural scenery and so on. In the third part, the author of the paper mainly demonstrates the symbolic meaning of the theme of the fiction, as well as the connection between the theme and American dream. The last part is a conclusion, which repeats the statement of this article. Thus, readers can have a better understanding of symbolism and themes of this novel The Great Gatsby.

Key word:  symbolism;  theme;  colors

摘要：象征主义手法从19世纪开始被广泛的应用于文学写作中，通过象征主义的写法，作者可以含蓄的表达写作的主体，丰富人物及人物心理活动，最终达到揭示文章主题的作用。菲茨杰拉德便成熟的运用象征主义的手法揭示了小说《了不起的盖茨比》的主题含义。讨论他的象征主义手法有利于我们更好了解其在小说中的运用，并引起我们对整个美国社会的思索。 本文主要对小说中的象征手法进行分析。

第一部分是介绍部分，主要对这部小说内容和作者有一个简单的了解。第二部分是本文的重点部分，结合文中的大量实例，对《了不起的盖茨比》中的象征物进行阐述，其中包括颜色，物体，自然景物等的象征意义。第三部分主要阐述了小说具有象征意义的主题与美国梦的联系，可以说小说主题的一大部分都在暗示着美国梦的破灭。最后一部分是总结部分，再次重申了本论文的主题。这样，我们能更好的了解象征主义和本小说的主题深刻含义。

关键词：象征；主题；色彩