Name _______ Class _______ Number _______ Date _______

Passage 15
Vincent van Gogh
The paintings of Vincent van Gogh sell for a lot of money today. But before
his death in 1890, van Gogh had only been able to sell one painting. This star of
the art world let a short, sad life that ended in a struggle with mental illness.
Vincent was born in the Netherlands in 1853. He studied to be a minister of
the church, like his father. But his mental illness was beginning, and he felt
everything too deeply. The leaders of his church asked him to leave. At the age
of tewenty-seven, he went to study art in Belgium. He thought that he could bring
people happiness by creating something beautiful. He started painting.
In 1886, Vincent moved to Paris. Around this time, there was a new style of
painting amongst the artists there – impressionism. Vincnet began to paint in this
style. He used short strokes of his paintbrush and bright colour to creat a feeling
– an impression – of light and movement. In early 1888, he moved to Arles in
the south of France. He wanted other artists to come and live there, too so they could all work together. His friend,
the artist Paul Gauguin, joined him. But Vincent’s mental illness became worse, and one day he came at Gauguin
with a knife. Gauguin escaped and Vincent, full of despair, cut off part of his own ear.
Although he was often in the hospital, Vincent painted his best works in the next few years, including Sunflowers,
Bedroom in Arles and The Starry Night. But people didn’t buy his paintings, and he always saw himself as a failure.
On July 27th, 1890, Vincent took a gun, walked into a field and shot himself in the chest. He died two days later.
He was just thirty-seven years old.

Van Gogh’s Wheat field with crows

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Part A. Word Power
I. Find these words in the text. Then match them to the correct meaning.
1. struggle ( ) a. a person who paints, draws, or creates any art
2. artist ( ) b. a fight against something difficult
3. movement ( ) c. a feeling of sadness and hopelessness
4. impression ( ) d. when something moves from one place to another
5. despair ( ) e. a feeling you get about the way something is

II. Complete the sentences with the correct words from the box.

struggle artist movement impression despair

1. Pablo Picasso was a famous _______________ of the twentieth century.

2. After Katie’s mother died, Katie felt a lot of _______________.
3. It’s a _______________ for me to learn French. It is not easy for me at all.
4. Did you see that _______________ in the tree? I think there’s a bird there.
5. When I spoke to Ann on the phone, I got the _______________ that she had been crying.

III. Find the words in the text with the same meaning.

mental illness escape stroke failure minister

1. _______________ to get away from danger

2. _______________ a movement of a paintbrush
3. _______________ a leader of a church
4. _______________ a person who has no success or can’t do anything right
5. _______________ an illness that changes the way you think or behave (two words)

IV. Complete the sentences with the correct words from the box.

mental illness escape stroke failure minister

1. When Ben lost his job, he felt that he was a _______________.

2. Having a _______________ can make life very difficult for people.
3. The family had to run to _______________ from the burning house.
4. On Sunday, Helen likes to go to church and listen to the _______________.
5. This paintbrush is thin, so it makes a small _______________ on the paper.

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V. Put these words in the correct box.

beautiful sad despair struggle failure best

positive negative

Part B. Understanding the main ideas

I. Choose the correct answer.
( ) 1. What is the main purpose of the passage?
A. To describe Vincent van Gogh’s life.
B. To describe some of Vincent van Gogh’s paintings.
C. To explain how Vincent van Gogh died.

II. Match each heading to the correct paragraph in the passage.

Paragraph _______ Leaving the church
Paragraph _______ A sad ending
Paragraph _______ The beginning of impressionism

Part C. Reading for detail

( ) 1. Vincent first studied _______.
A. mental illness B. art C. to be a minister D. impressionism
( ) 2. Vincent moved to Paris in _______.
A. 1853 B. 1890 C. 1886 D. 1888
( ) 3. Vincent saw himself as a failure because _______.
A. no one liked his paintings B. no one bought his paintings
C. Gauguin told him to give up painting D. no other artists would come to live with him in Arles

Part D. Answering questions

1. Did Vincent van Gogh make a good living by selling his paintings?
____________________________________________________________
2. When and where was Vincent born?
____________________________________________________________
3. According to Vincent, how could he bring people happiness?
____________________________________________________________
4. Why did Paul Gauguin leave Vincent van Gogh at last?
____________________________________________________________

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5. When did Vincent die?
____________________________________________________________
6. Do you think Vincent van Gogh was a successful artist? Why or why not?
____________________________________________________________

Part E. Using reference words

( ) 1. In Paragraph 3, “He wanted other artists to come and live there, too”, the word “there” refers to
_______.
A. Arles B. other artists C. Paris D. the south of France
( ) 2. In Paragraph 3, “His friend, the artist Paul Gauguin, joined him’”, the word “him” refers to _______.
A. Vincent B. another artist C. Gauguin D. Vincent’s father

Part F. Summary
Complete the summary with words from the text.
Vincent van Gogh was born in the (1)_______________ in 1853. He started off studying to become a
(2)_______________ of the church like his father. However, Vincent had a mental illness which made him feel things
too deeply, and the leaders of the church asked him to leave. Vincent went to Belgium to study (3)_______________
and moved to Paris in 1886. He started painting in a new style called (4)_______________. However, no one ever
bought his paintings and Vincent saw himself as a (5)_______________. Sadly, he eventually shot himself in the
chest and died in 1890. Vincent van Gogh never knew that his paintings would eventually sell for a lot of money.

Part G. What do you think?

Do you like the art of Vincent van Gogh? Why or why not? Which artists do you like? (At least give two
reasons.)

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