Keeping silent is nearly dissimulation

Vincent van Gogh to Theo van Gogh, from Nuenen, 2 January 1884

Saying a few words about things is different from forcing them - at certain moments keeping silent about something is nearly identical with dissimulation. I just did not want to do that.

As for the rest, whether isolated or not, I will try to manage so that I can work on; and as to my opinions - I sometimes think of what Taine says, "It seems to me that as far as the worker is personally concerned, he can keep that to himself," so it was probably a mistake on my part not to keep things strictly to myself. And bear in mind that I do not want you to consider the help you give me as a thing you are obliged to do, for you were not obliged to do it in the past, nor are you now, it has been a voluntary thing on your part for which I, for my part, feel, and I repeat, shall certainly always feel, a real obligation to you.

Letter 351
Translation courtesy of Robert Harrison.
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