Tell you a real Vincent van Gogh

Author: Xu Zhirong
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: A mainstream American novelist who spouts lies; an economic depression that had just passed; and a group of Japanese who suddenly became wealthy. These three gourds turned into a carriage, relentlessly dragging Van Gogh's remains toward the altar of the 20th century's greatest, at least in status, painting master. But what is the truth? This book starts with Irving Stone's Lust for Life and unravels the layers to reveal a real Van Gogh in history—clearly with severe personality flaws, destined to be abandoned by any era he lived in due to his obsessive and embellished personality. Van Gogh was not a god, nor even a commendable person.
A mainstream American novelist who spouts lies; an economic depression that had just passed; and a group of Japanese who suddenly became wealthy. These three gourds turned into a carriage, relentlessly dragging Van Gogh's remains toward the altar of the 20th century's greatest, at least in status, painting master. But what is the truth? This book starts with Irving Stone's Lust for Life and unravels the layers to reveal a real Van Gogh in history—clearly with severe personality flaws, destined to be abandoned by any era he lived in due to his obsessive and embellished personality. Van Gogh was not a god, nor even a commendable person.
What being fired from Goupil meant to Van Gogh, he knew better than anyone. In the distance, his heir status was ruined; up close, his immediate livelihood became a problem. More seriously, the more fervent he was in his religious devotion, the more uneasy he felt about becoming unemployed—idleness was a great sin in the eyes of Protestants. So, in the last three months at Goupil, he worked exceptionally hard—submitting resumes to countless job postings. This last-ditch effort would undoubtedly have made Uncle Vincent extremely annoyed: "If I'd known it would be like this, why did I start it in the first place?" However, for a high school dropout with no special skills, how easy could finding a job be?
Finally, as he was about to leave Paris, a British private school replied: teach children German, French, and arithmetic, with a trial period covering only food and lodging, with no salary. The school was in Ramsgate, a seaside town, and it took four and a half hours to reach London by train. Though there was no salary, it was at least a job. This trip to England for work easily brought to mind Eugénie. To shape Van Gogh's "larger-than-life" image, Irving Stone even portrayed him as resigning voluntarily to go to England in search of his beloved in his novel Lust for Life. But the truth was far from that. Although Goupil gave Van Gogh the opportunity to write a resignation letter, it was merely a way to preserve a little face for him. Since Van Gogh had left without notice during Christmas, the company had already decided to fire him. After Van Gogh returned to Paris from the Netherlands, he was told the company would keep him on for only three months to give him time to find a new job and was asked to submit his resignation immediately. In his novel, Irving Stone vividly depicted Van Gogh's trip to England as a tear-jerking pilgrimage of love: because there was no salary, Van Gogh couldn't afford train tickets and had to set off every Saturday afternoon, walking 160 kilometers from Ramsgate to London just to sneak a glimpse of his beloved's window. On a good day, he could see Eugénie leave for church on Sunday morning. But the reality was vastly different: Van Gogh did indeed make such long journeys, but only once. That was because the school moved from Ramsgate to Elstow near London, and Van Gogh voluntarily walked there to enjoy the scenery along the way. Although the school kept Van Gogh on, it never paid him a salary. So after moving to Elstow, Van Gogh jumped ship to a church school, still teaching German and French. Though the salary was meager, at least he had income. The school's headmaster, Rev. Jones, was not only responsible for all school affairs but also served as the pastor of two churches. He was very kind to Van Gogh and, upon learning that Van Gogh aspired to become a minister, arranged for him to lead a sermon. This excited Van Gogh greatly. He copied his sermon and sent it to Theo, along with a heartfelt letter: "Theo, last Sunday, your brother preached in the church for the first time in his life. Standing at the pulpit, I felt as if someone who had emerged from a dark cave was returning to the friendly, benevolent light of day. A joyful and happy thought rose in my heart: wherever I go in the future, I will spread the gospel; to spread the gospel well, one must keep it in one's heart. May God grant me this ability."
Rev. Jones was very pleased with Van Gogh's sermon and immediately promoted him from assistant teacher to a full teacher, entrusting him with raising funds for the church in London. A month later, Christmas came again. Van Gogh returned home for the holiday. His progress in England greatly cheered his family, especially his father, the pastor—who had been serving God since his grandfather's generation. Now, the eldest son had decided to follow in his father's footsteps, which was a joyous choice. After all, Uncle Vincent's business could be inherited by Theo. The whole family was very satisfied with this arrangement. Vincent Van Gogh, pastor—this sounded wonderful.
However, just then, a small mishap disrupted the family's entire plan: Uncle Vincent was unaware of his wayward nephew's new developments. During the holiday, an old friend, Mr. Breet, came to visit him. He was the owner of a bookstore near Rotterdam. Still thinking of Van Gogh, Uncle Vincent persuaded his old friend to arrange a job for his nephew at the bookstore. Van Gogh agreed without hesitation, reasoning, "(The bookstore's) salary would naturally be higher than what Mr. Jones gave, and a man has a responsibility to consider this, because life will require more money in the future." It seemed that money was more important than God. And Eugénie—she was now just an old acquaintance. During his time in London, Van Gogh had visited the Loyees once, to raise funds for Rev. Jones's church.
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