The Diary of a Young Girl: The Definitive Edition by Anne Frank

 Summary

This is a  definitive version of the diary entries kept by a young Anne Frank. These entries describe what is was like to be  a Jew in hiding during the Holocaust. This autobiographical piece was actually found in an attic where Anne frank lived the last years of her life. It is one of the most read autobiographies of all time.

 Genre

Biography

 "Biography tells about a real person's life. The subjects of biography are usually people who are famous [...], but there are also many biographies [...] that are about 'ordinary' people who do extra ordinary things" (Galda, Cullinan, & Sipe, 2010, p. 18).

 Illustrations

This book contains some illustrations. They are  mostly photographs and help to add to the setting and historical context of the book. 

Classroom Activity

Reader's Response Questions

1. What role does the diary play in Anne’s life?
2. How does Anne feel about the laws that restrict the Jews’ freedom?
3.  Does Anne consider her family lucky or unfortunate to be living in the annex?

Activity 1

Instruct students to choose one of the below questions and to write an essay.

• Why do you think Hanneli appears in Anne’s dreams?
• Is Anne in love with Peter? Why does she feel she can confide in him?
• How is Anne affected by the various break-ins? How is her response connected to her general mood while in hiding?
• Do you feel that Anne believes she is going to survive the war? Why or why not?
• How does Anne mature and develop through the course of her diary?

Activity 2

Write a poem from Anne Frank’s point of view. You can choose the topic of your poem, but be sure to make some sort of textual reference (refer to people, places, the time period...something that shows me you have reading and comprehending) and try to mimic Anne’s own thoughts that you read in her diary

Personal Response

The Diary of a Young Girl: The Definitive Edition by Anne Frank is an authentic piece of literature that should be integrated in every secondary classroom. It describes contemporary issues that every adolescence experiences. The reader is drawn into the author's state of mind and is able to feel the constant fear of being discovered which in the end sadly happens. Anne Frank's last entry was on August 4, 1944 before she and her family was deported to Ausschwitz. Her last words are really captivating and touching to me:

"[b]ecause when everybody starts hovering over me, I get cross, then sad, and finally end up turning my heart inside out, the bad part on the outside and the good part on the inside, and keep trying to find a way to become what I'd like to be and what I could be if… if only there were no other people in the world."

Anne Frank was never given the opportunity never to become what she would like to be, because she was robbed of her young and innocent life. 

Similar Works

Milkweed by Jerry Spinelli

Maus I: A Survivors Tale by Art Spiegelman

Night by Elie Wiesel

Author's Background Information

References

Frank, A. (1995). The diary of a young girl: Definitive edition. New York, NY: Doubleday Books

Galda, L., Cullinan, B.E., & Sipe, L.R. (2010). Literature and the child (7th ed.). Belmond, CA:Wadsworths, Inc.