Early in the book, I wondered how Anne was able to focus on such trivial matters when she is just lucky to be alive. Upon finishing the book and watching her character and personality evolve, it becomes more clear. It brings the theme of identity and the moral universe into focus. Anne did have a life before she went into hiding, and throughout her diary she describes this part of her life as ideal. Towards the end of her diary, Anne had been in hiding for approximately 2 years. All she had known for 2 years was the annex of … Continue reading Independent Reading #4

In The Diary Of a Young Girl by Anne Frank, two themes that emerge are loneliness and coming of age. Although Anne has been placed in an incredibly uncommon situation, she still has the same feelings that many have around her age. Anne feels like she is alone, even though she is in a small, cramped space with 7 other people. She feels that no one understands her, and that she is exiled by everyone around her. There are brief moments when she connects with her sister, her mother, and her father, who she tends to feel most comfortable with. However, … Continue reading Independent Reading #3

In no way am I attempting to compare my current situation to Anne Frank’s experience in hiding. Instead, I would like to point out the similarities, as well as the differences. Throughout the story, Anne tends to focus on things that may not seem very important, such as how one of the people she is in hiding with won’t give her cookies. “Except for the first week, I haven’t seen even one of the cookies he so generously promised me.” (p. 78.) While she is worried about this trivial matter, there are millions of other Jews who were not as … Continue reading Independent Reading #2

In The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank, it is baffling how Anne is able to obsess over such small and unimportant things, even while she is in hiding. In the story, which takes place during the Holocaust, Anne and her family are hiding from the Germans in a secret annex of a building. They are in a small space with another family, and Anne feels that she doesn’t fit in with anyone, with the exception of her father occasionally. She is bothered by many trivial things, such as having to eat vegetables. “If I take a small helping … Continue reading Independent Reading #1