This paper looks at the attributes of The Diary of Anne Frank and examines the elements that make this tale so endearing and enduring. Anne's ability to sustain her optimism and see people as essentially good in the face of the terrible persecution and prejudice of the Holocaust is discussed.
¶ … Diary of Anne Frank
The importance of Anne Frank's diary lies not in the fact that it is an eyewitness to the terrors of the Holocaust, for this is but one in thousands, it lies in the fact her writings reaffirm man's faith and hope in his fellow man and demonstrate that even under the most depressing of circumstances one can live, love, dream, and experience the entire spectrum of human emotions. The book is about survival, prejudice, the nobility of human compassion. It is also about young girl during adolescence.
This work has maintained its popularity for a number of reasons. This diary is an important historical document. It was written contemporaneously with the events. Anne was born in 1929 and receives her diary on her 13th birthday; just weeks before her family were driven into hiding in Nazi occupied Amsterdam. The dairy recounts twenty-five months of confinement in a limited space with her parents, sister, a second family, and a middle-aged intolerant bitter dentist. It is a journal of a journey of constant anxiety, hunger, and oppression.
The story also serves as a great educational tool. Written by a young girl who was experiencing all of the horrors of Nazi anti-Semitism, the book touches the audience deeply and appeals to a wide range of ages. Young people can identify with the ideas, thoughts and feelings expressed in the narrative, as can adults who were once young themselves. Anne's attitudes and reactions feel familiar. The book is honest.
Additionally, it is a good story. It relates an engrossing tale of survival during one of contemporary history's darkest hours. The universal appeal stems from the details of the plight these people were subjected to, a scarce and unreliable food security, insufficient clothing, and their indomitable will to survive. Anne's ultimate demise, despite her optimistic outlook, further contributes to the feeling of loss and the senselessness of the time provoked by the work.
November 7, 1942
The November 7, 1942 entry, made less than six months into the ordeal at the annex testifies to the youth and immaturity of Anne at the time. She and her sister argue over a book and Anne reacts as a victim.
"I cling to Father because my contempt of Mother is growing daily and it's only through him that I'm able to retain the last ounce of family feeling I have left. He doesn't understand that I sometimes need to vent my feelings for Mother. He doesn't want to talk about it, and he avoids any discussion involving Mother's failings. And yet Mother, with all her shortcomings, is tougher for me to deal with. I don't know how I should act. I can't very well confront her with her carelessness, her sarcasm and her hard-heartedness, yet I can't continue to take the blame for everything."
Had the brunt of the diary continued in this vain the work, though a sad and terrible reflection of man's inhumanity to man, would have been far less significant and appealing. Its place in history and our hearts would have been diminished, viewed as the angst of a teenage girl. On the other hand, the inclusion of this passage gives the reader insight into the incredible growth Anne made while living in the Annex.
July 15, 1944
The entry of July 15, 1944 was made after Anne had spent two years living in the annex. At this point the reader has been privy to a multitude of Anne's most inner thoughts and feelings as well as the events inside the annex. Anne's insights on this day, given that the reader is aware that in less than a month the entire group except for Otto will be arrested and hauled away to their eventual deaths, is most poignant.
"Anyone who claims that the older folks have a more difficult time in the Annex doesn't realize that the problems have a far greater impact on us. We're much too young to deal with these problems, but they keep thrusting themselves on us until, finally, we're forced to think up a solution, though most of the time our solutions crumble when faced with the facts. It's difficult in times like these: ideals, dreams and cherished hopes rise within us, only to be crushed by grim reality. It's a wonder I haven't abandoned all my ideals, they seem so absurd and impractical. Yet I cling to them because I still believe, in spite of everything, that people are truly good at heart."
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