Vincent Van Gogh 3.1

Vincent Van Gogh was a Dutch artist who was not only known for his masterpieces, but for his eccentricities and mental breakdowns. Charles Stewart Roberts argued that Vincent Van Gogh’s profound conscience troubled him throughout his life and ultimately led to his suicide at the age of thirty seven. Through a brief account of Van Gogh’s life and other various methods, Roberts was able to develop and support his argument effectively.

Roberts began the article by discussing letters that Van Gogh wrote to his brother over a period of twenty years. He compared these letters to documents written by famous historical figures such as Leonardo da Vinci and Benvenuto Cellini to possibly lead the reader to believe that these documents are credible and well-written. He proceeded to describe the three elements of Freud’s theory of the ego in order to convey Van Gogh’s mental state. For example, regarding the element of his conscience, Roberts stated that it “confined him and was the chief force in his self-destruction.” Then, Roberts included an excerpt from one of Van Gogh’s letters that portrayed his Christian and moral conscience. At the age of twenty four, Van Gogh began a career in the church but his opinion of the clergymen quickly fell, leading him to treat painting as his vocation. Therefore Van Gogh maintained Christian principles and conscience, but felt guilt for leaving his position in the church to pursue painting more fully. In order to prove to the reader that Van Gogh had mental issues, Roberts outlined Van Gogh’s first mental breakdown. After conversing with several prostitutes, Van Gogh read the passage in the bible that stated that “if one of your organs offends you, you should cut it off and throw it into the fire.” He took this passage literally and cut off his own ear for listening to the prostitutes’ words. This is an example of how his Christian principles led to his demise. Roberts concluded the article by portraying Van Gogh’s suicide and describing it as a “victory for his conscience”.

Roberts utilized several techniques to add depth and validity to his argument that Vincent Van Gogh’s immaculate conscience tormented him throughout his life and led to his suicide at the age of thirty seven. The first tool Roberts used to provide validity was the implementation of Freud’s psychological theory of the ego. Not only does this information provide background for how one may develop their morality, it also provides that reader with a valid source of information, Freud, to prove that he is not simply making up theories on his own. Roberts’ inclusion of an excerpt from one of Van Gogh’s letters was crucial to his argument. It provided interesting information to the reader as well as allowing the reader to get a primary account of how Van Gogh’s mind actually worked. By providing details of Van Gogh’s transition from a career in the church to a career in painting, the reader was able to see that he had a strong Christian background and that the struggle between his Christian moral conscience and his creative painting is a constant battle pulling him in different directions. Also, Roberts’ example of Van Gogh’s ear-cutting episode fit perfectly with the theme of the paper and was the most convincing aspect of the article. This was a direct and causal relationship between Van Gogh’s inner struggle between Christianity and creativity. The event is also shocking and interesting which engages the reader into the material even more.

Charles Stewart Roberts effectively argued that Van Gogh’s psychotic behavior was derived from his inner struggle between his strong Christian moral conscience and his need for creativity. Without the inclusion of a primary account from Van Gogh, professional psychological information from Freud, and important elements of his life, Roberts would have been unable to convince the reader of his argument.

http://www.baylorhealth.edu/proceedings/23_1/23_1_roberts_CS_vangogh.pdf