Annefrank Teachersguide PDF
Annefrank Teachersguide PDF
Annefrank Teachersguide PDF
Teacher’s Guide
Table of Contents
3 Introduction
5 Setting the Scene: Historical Context
9 Student Handout: Key Dates
10 Using the Film The Diary of Anne
Frank in the Classroom
13 Student Handout: Making
History Personal
14 Reading Closely: Revised Passages
in Focus
15 Student Handout: Revised
Passages in Focus
16 Exploring the Diary Form
18 An Interview with Author
Francine Prose
© Darlow Smithson Productions for Masterpiece
20 Recommended Resources
23 Credits
TA M S I N G R E I G, E L L I E K E N D R I C K , A N D I A I N G L E N
A S E DITH, A N N E, A N D OT TO FR A N K .
on biographies as their source material, this new adaptation features Anne Frank’s unedited
words, drawn directly from her diary. Screenwriter Deborah Moggach also received
permission to use passages of the diary previously deleted by the family. To further enhance
the film’s authenticity, the production team painstakingly recreated the secret Amsterdam
annex where Anne and her family hid from the Nazis between 1942 and 1944.
Reinterpreting a Classic
“I want to be true to the real The Diary of Anne Frank has become one of the world’s most widely read works of
girl….During those two years, nonfiction after the Bible. In adapting this classic for a new generation, screenwriter
cramped into that tiny space, Deborah Moggach set out to show young viewers that Anne was a “thoroughly modern
teenager—similar in many ways to today”—who lived in anything-but-normal times.
Anne grew and changed
Moggach explains:
profoundly. She deepened in
spirit, she discovered herself as Like many people, I read the diary when I was young. Now, on rereading it, I’m struck by
a writer, she pondered good how contemporary Anne is…obsessed with boys, with her looks…rebellious, highly critical
of her mother. In other words, a thoroughly modern teenager. In past adaptations, she has
and evil and questioned the
been somewhat sanctified—a bit cheeky and talkative maybe, but also over-sweet. I want to
very meaning of being human.” be true to the real girl. Sure, she got on people’s nerves; but she was also full of life, her own
SCR EEN W R ITER DEBOR A H MOGGACH sternest critic and, above all, she made people laugh.
This guide has been developed in consultation with Facing History and Ourselves, an
international educational organization that provides educators, students, and ordinary
citizens with the information and tools they need to examine the history of racism,
antisemitism, and prejudice, and to link that history to the moral choices they confront in
their own lives. At the core of their work is the resource book Facing History and Ourselves:
Holocaust and Human Behavior, (http://www.facinghistory.org/resources/hhb) which
explores the consequences of hatred. Available for download, borrowing, or purchase, this
book has helped students all over the world learn to recognize the consequences of bigotry
and other forms of hatred. Facing History and Ourselves uses that book and related
resources online and in in-person seminars and workshops. For more information, visit
http://facinghistory.org.
This guide also utilizes many observations from the 2009 publication Anne Frank: The
Book, The Life, The Afterlife by Francine Prose. Prose argues that Anne Frank was not an
“accidental author” but rather an extraordinary writer who crafted a deliberate work of art
when she wrote and revised her diary. Not only does Prose’s research inform the reader as
they experience the book, but her observations help give context to some of the original
aspects of the film. An interview with Francine Prose is included in the guide and can help
students and teachers understand why Anne Frank’s story is still relevant today.
A N N E, ED ITH, A N D
M A R G O T F R A N K , 19 3 3 .
Anne Frank Fonds, Basel/Anne Frank House, Amsterdam/Getty Images
Historical Context
The History of Antisemitism
In order to understand the Holocaust, is it helpful to explore the foundations of
antisemitism. Antisemitism is the unfounded hatred of Jews because they are Jews. That
hatred has had a long history in Europe and beyond. In earlier times, Jews were subject to
discrimination and persecution because they refused to accept the religion of the majority.
© Darlow Smithson Productions for Masterpiece
Jews who converted, or so Christians claimed, were no longer considered outsiders; they
belonged. In the 1800s, a new form of antisemitism emerged. It was based on the false
notion that humans are divided into separate and distinct “races,” and therefore people born
as Jews, regardless of their religious beliefs, belonged to an evil and dangerous “race.”
Jews were now considered permanent outsiders.
In times of crisis, Jews and other minorities have always been at risk, and the upheavals
ANNE AND EDITH FR ANK (ELLIE KENDRICK
A N D TA M S I N G R E I G ) H U R R Y T H R O U G H
after World War I and the worldwide depression that began in the 1930s were no
T H E S T R E E T S O F A M S T E R D A M TO T H E exceptions. In such times, many people are attracted to simple answers to complex
SECRET ANNEX.
problems. Those answers often place the blame for the crisis on the “other” in the society.
Antisemitism rose in nearly every nation in Europe and the Americas during those crises.
T H E E N T R A N C E TO T H E S E C R E T A N N E X WA S
H I D D E N B Y T H I S M O V E A B L E B O O KC A S E .
M A R G O T, E D I T H , O T TO, A N D A N N E F R A N K ( F E L I C I T Y J O N E S , TA M S I N G R E I G, I A I N G L E N , A N D E L L I E K E N D R I C K )
WA I T TO S E E I F T H E I R H I D I N G P L A C E H A S B E E N D I S C O V E R E D.
In 1933 the Nazis took control of Germany. Once in power, they destroyed the nation’s
democratic institutions and turned Germany into a police state. They were also determined
to protect Germans from the nation’s “racial enemies”—the Jews. In just six years, 400
anti-Jewish measures were enacted. Each was designed to protect so-called “Aryan blood”
from contamination with so-called “Jewish blood.” Otto Frank was among the first
German Jews to understand how dangerous this new government-led antisemitism
really was.
Then on September 1, 1939, the Nazis invaded Poland. Two days later, Britain and France
declared war on Germany. World War II had officially begun. By 1940, the Germans
occupied the Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Luxembourg, and France. In June
1941, they invaded the Soviet Union. By December of 1941, the Germans had also
declared war on the United States.
When Germany invaded the Netherlands in 1940, the Frank family once again found itself
living under Nazi rule. Over the next two years, Jews were gradually removed from public
Our freedom was severely restricted by a series of anti-Jewish decrees: Jews were required to
wear a yellow star; Jews were required to turn in their bicycles; Jews were forbidden to use
streetcars; Jews were forbidden to ride in cars, even their own; Jews were required to do
their shopping between 3 and 5 p.m.; Jews were required to frequent only Jewish-owned
barbershops and beauty parlors; Jews were forbidden to be out on the streets between 8 p.m.
and 6 a.m.; Jews were forbidden to go to theaters, movies or any other forms of entertain-
ment; ... Jews were forbidden to visit Christians in their homes; Jews were required to
attend Jewish schools, etc. [ JUNE 20, 1942]
© Darlow Smithson Productions for Masterpiece
From THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK: THE DEFINITIVE EDITION by Anne Frank, edited by Otto H. Frank and Mirjam Pressler, translated by Susan Massotty,
translation copyrights © 1995 by Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc. Used by permission of Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc.
By July 1941 Nazi officials were increasingly concerned about the “inefficiencies of these
operations” and the psychological burden they placed on the killers. So they devised a more
“complete solution of the Jewish question” by creating six death camps in Poland—Chelm-
no, Belzec, Sobibor, Treblinka, Majdanek, and Auschwitz-Birkenau. Of the 6 million Jews
killed during the Holocaust, approximately 2.7 million were murdered in the death camps
by the time the war ended in 1945.
The Holocaust survivor Miles Lerman Marion Pritchard, who rescued Jews in
has aptly remarked on the significant Amsterdam from the Nazis, said in an
role bystanders played in allowing the interview, “[T]here were indeed some
Holocaust to occur. “A perpetrator is people who behaved criminally by
not the most dangerous enemy,” Lerman betraying their Jewish neighbors and
argues. “The most dangerous part is therefore sentencing them to death.
the bystander because neutrality always There were some people who dedicated
helps the killer.” themselves to actively rescuing as many
FA C I N G H I S TO R Y A N D O U R S E LV E S , A N N E F R A N K people as possible. Somewhere in between
I N T H E W O R L D E X H I B I T: T E A C H E R ’ S G U I D E. was the majority, whose actions varied
B R O O K L I N E , M A : FA C I N G H I S TO R Y A N D from the minimum decency of at least
O U R S E LV E S N AT I O N A L F O U N D AT I O N , I N C .,
19 9 3 , P. 1
keeping quiet if they knew where Jews
were hidden to finding a way to help
when they were asked.”
I N T E R V I E W I N C O U R A G E T O C A R E E D.
B Y C A R O L R I T T N E R A N D S . M E Y E R S . P. 2 9
Early in July 1942, Anne’s older sister Margot—who had just turned 16—was ordered by
the Nazis to report to a work camp. Otto Frank had anticipated this development months
VIEWING IDEA earlier and had secretly created a hiding place for his family in the back of the warehouse
above his office, with the help of a few trusted employees. The Franks moved into this
Have students watch the first ten hiding place, also known as the “secret annex,” on July 6, 1942. They were soon joined by
minutes of the film. Then ask another family, whom Anne called the van Daans in her diary, and later by a dentist whom
them to analyze the reasons
Anne called Albert Dussel. A group of helpers—including Miep Gies, who worked in
why the Frank family made the
decision to go into hiding. Otto Frank’s office and who died in January, 2010 at the age of 100—risked their lives by
What were conditions like for offering support to the Franks when they went into hiding. This group of eight lived in the
Jews in the Netherlands after annex for more than two years; it was here that Anne wrote hundreds of entries in her
the Nazi occupation? What new diary, which she nicknamed “Kitty.” Anne addressed Kitty as if she were writing letters to a
restrictions did the family face
after they moved into the annex?
close friend.
Ask students to imagine how it
On August 4, 1944, German police raided the annex after being tipped off to its existence
might feel to have to change
your life in so many ways simply by an anonymous informant. The Franks, the van Daans, and Mr. Dussel were all sent to
because you are Jewish. Westerbork, a Dutch transit camp (a temporary camp where Jews and other prisoners were
held before they were shipped to forced labor or death camps), and from there deported to
Auschwitz, a death camp.
The Franks were on the last transport from the Netherlands to Auschwitz. Mrs. Frank was
murdered there. As the Soviet troops advanced into Poland in the winter of 1945, the
Germans shipped many inmates, including Anne and Margot, into Germany. Margot and
Anne were transferred to a concentration camp called Bergen Belsen where they died of
typhus in March 1945 just weeks before the war ended. Of the eight Jews who had hidden
in the annex, only Otto Frank survived. He was instrumental in editing Anne’s diary and in
bringing her story—and her remarkable talents as a writer—to the attention of the
world.—Adapted from Facing History and Ourselves, Brookline, MA: Facing History and
Ourselves National Foundation, Inc. Copyright © 2010.
Key Dates
W O R L D WA R I I ANNE FRANK’S LIFE
June 12, 1929 Anne Frank is born in Frankfurt, Germany.
January 30, 1933 The Nazi Party gains
control of Germany. September 1933 Otto Frank leaves Germany for Amsterdam.
February 1934 Anne, her sister Margot, and their mother Edith
leave Germany and join their father Otto in Amsterdam,
where he has set up a new company and found an apartment for
the family.
September 1, 1939 Nazis invade Poland.
July 1941 By this time, the Nazis have created six death
camps in Poland—Chelmno, Belzec, Sobibor, Treblinka,
Majdanek and Auschwitz-Birkenau.
their thinking about the theme they chose using the After Viewing questions to guide their
discussion.
As a culminating activity, have each group report to the entire class on the key points they
discovered by considering the film through these themes.
In Search of Self
TA M S I N G R E I G A S E D I T H F R A N K .
Before Viewing
• How have you changed over the past two years? How would your friends or family
members say you are different today than you were two years ago?
“Girls do grow up nowadays.
Haven’t you noticed? We’re After Viewing
• In what specific ways did Anne change during her months in the annex? To what extent
not going to be the same as
are these changes in response to her situation in hiding, and to what extent are these
you. We’re going to live our
changes part of growing up?
own lives and travel and have
• How does Anne’s image of herself and of her future as a woman differ from her image of
careers...and we’re going to
her mother and of Mrs. van Daan? What new feelings does Anne have about herself and
make a better job of it than her priorities? With whom does she discuss these feelings?
you grown-ups did.” • How and why does Anne develop as a writer during her two years in hiding? What
A N N E F R A N K , I N A C O N V E R S AT I O N influences her perception of herself as a writer and how does this affect her relationships
W IT H H ER MOT H ER ED IT H
with other people? How does it change the way she views herself as a person?
• Screenwriter Deborah Moggach set out to portray Anne as “a thoroughly modern
teenager.” Ask students: What images come to mind when you think of a “thoroughly
modern teenager”? In what ways does Anne strike you as modern? What do you think
of Anne’s relationship with each of her parents or her relationship with Peter? What
similarities do you see between Anne and yourself? What differences seem most striking?
A N N E A N D E D I T H F R A N K ( E L L I E K E N D R I C K A N D TA M S I N G R E I G ) S I T W I T H P E T E R A N D H E R M A N N VA N D A A N
( G E O F F B R E TO N A N D R O N C O O K ).
• As Anne considers the concepts ofgood and evil what conclusions does she express?
How does her conception of goodness and evil evolve during the course of the film?
Do you agree or disagree with Anne?
• What acts of bigotry and antisemitism are depicted in the film? In her diary Anne
describes the many forms of discrimination she experiences before she goes into hiding.
Name some of the restrictions placed on Jews during World War II and consider why
each rule may have been put into effect. How do the events of the Nazi rise to power
and occupation of the Netherlands influence Anne’s life? Imagine living under these
restrictions and consider how you might have reacted.
Courage
Before Viewing
• Describe a situation in which you or someone you know or have read about took a
courageous stand. What happened? Who benefited?
After Viewing
• Consider Otto Frank’s statement to the fellow residents of the annex: “We’re lucky. We’re
really very lucky.” Why does he say this and what impact does it have on the residents of
the annex?
• Why do the residents ofthe annex celebrate holidays and birthdays while they are in
hiding? How do these events contribute to a sense of “normality” in an abnormal
environment and why is that important?
• Consider the decision to invite Mr. Dussel to share the annex with the Franks and van
Daans. What risks does this decision pose for those in hiding as well as to their helpers?
What would you have done in this situation?
• What examples of courage, compassion, and sacrifice do you see in the film? Do the
people who perform these acts think of themselves as heroic? Specifically consider Miep
Gies, Jan Gies and the other people who helped the eight residents of the secret annex.
What did they risk by helping the annex residents and how did they feel about it? Do
you think you would have acted similarly or differently?
3 Create your own leaf for the Anne Frank Tree, an interactive monument on which
young people from around the world share their thoughts, stories, and artwork on
courage, freedom, goodness, and other themes related to The Diary of Anne Frank.
4 t the end of the film there is a description of what happened to each character after the
A
N A Z I S O L D I E R O N PAT R O L I N
secret annex was raided by the Nazis. Select one character featured in the film and use
A MSTERDA M . the Internet to find biographical data, photographs, and (if available) video of or writings
by this person. Although Anne used pseudonyms in her diary, biographical information
can be found on each resident of the annex. Compile the completed biographies into a
class set and share your work with other classes or family members.
5 I n her new book Anne Frank: The Book, The Life, The Afterlife, Francine Prose notes that
“Anne Frank’s diary is among the most frequently banned or challenged books in
BANNED AND American libraries and schools.” Find out more about this phenomenon by investigating
CHALLENGED BOOKS a case in which citizens attempted to have the diary banned. What arguments were
presented on both sides, and what was the outcome? In your opinion, was the outcome
American Library
Association: About Banned
appropriate? Explain. Visit the Avon Lake, Ohio Public Library for background about
and Challenged Books the banning of The Diary of Anne Frank (http://avonlake.wordpress.com/2007/09/22/
(http://www.ala.org/ala/ banned-books-staff-picks/) and “Culpeper County Public Schools Pulls Explicit Text”
issuesadvocacy/banned/ (http://www2.starexponent.com/cse/news/local/article/ccps_pulls_explicit_text/
aboutbannedbooks/index.cfm).
51217/) to learn more about a specific situation in which The Diary of Anne Frank was
Explore more about banned challenged and/or banned. (Also see the Resources section.)
books by visiting this ALA web
site. It explains the difference 6 sing the Internet, learn about and report on a present-day example of genocide or
U
between a challenge to a book antisemitism. What are the roots of this situation? What steps are citizens and organiza-
and a banning of a book. It also tions taking to raise awareness and bring about change? In what concrete ways can you
includes lists of books that have
been challenged or banned and
make a difference on this issue?
ideas and resources about ways
7 I n October 2009, President Barack Obama signed the Matthew Shepard and James
to meet these challenges.
Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act into law. Who were Matthew Shepard and James
Byrd, and in what ways were they the targets of hate? What protections does this new
law provide?
8 Choose an ethnic, religious, or cultural group and investigate how members of this
community have been portrayed in movies or popular culture, both in the past and
present. In an essay (perhaps a video essay), reflect on the ways in which media images
and popular culture reinforce or challenge stereotypes.
1 “ We have to have rules,” declares Otto Frank soon after the Franks and van Daans move
into the secret annex. Name three of the many rules that the annex residents imposed
on themselves. What were the reasons for each rule? Of these rules, which do you think
would have been hardest for you to adhere to? Why? What rules would you make?
2 ow did the annex residents obtain food and supplies? What did they eat?
H
What deprivations did they face?
M I E P G I E S , 19 31.
3 e people living in the annex could not have survived for 25 months without the
Th
loyalty and dedication of their helpers. What dangers did Miep Gies and the other
office workers confront in helping the Franks and van Daans hide? Think about the
commitment it took to provide daily assistance to eight people for 25 months. Why do
WATCH INTERVIEWS you think Miep Gies and her colleagues were willing to help the Franks? How did Anne
WITH MIEP GIES view Meip Gies and the others who helped the Frank family?
Visit the official YouTube Web
site for the Anne Frank House 4 ow did the various annex residents cope with the feeling of confinement and the
H
and learn more about Miep Gies. loss of independence? What did the residents do to make their time in the annex less
The site provides videotaped
oppressive? How was life different for them on weekdays versus weekends? Choose
interviews of Miep Gies in which two residents and compare their responses to life in hiding.
she describes why she helped the
Franks, when Otto asked for her 5 o what extent were Anne and her family aware of events taking place in the outside
T
help, when she gave the diary to
world? How did they get information? Was the information they received reliable? How
Otto Frank after the war and
much more. much knowledge did they have about the course of the war and the treatment of Jews?
(Please note: English subtitles for
Miep will appear by clicking the
6 ummarize one of the most memorable arguments or quarrels that took place while Anne
S
arrow at the bottom right corner of and her companions were in hiding. What was at stake? How was the issue resolved?
the video and choosing Turn on
Captions.) 7 I n what ways does reading about a single family and their life in hiding help you
understand the larger events of World War II? What do you see as the most valuable
historical lessons that can be learned through Anne’s diary? You may want to explore
some of the resources at the end of this guide to help you learn more about World War II
before you answer the questions above.
“the revised version is clearer, more readable, and free of the sketchiness and haste that
muddle some early passages.” She adds that the revisions “are nearly always better written—
more condensed, descriptive, fully dramatized, and evocative.”
Deepen your understanding of Anne Frank’s role as an editor of her own work by studying
the two passages below. The passage at left is the original version of the diary entry dated
July 8, 1942; the revised version appears at right. After reading both passages, discuss the
ELLIE KENDRICK AS ANNE FR ANK.
questions that follow. (For additional insights, see the section An Interview with Author
Francine Prose.)
At about 3 o’clock a policeman arrived and called from At three o’clock...the doorbell rang. I didn’t hear it,
the door downstairs, Miss Margot Frank, Mummy since I was out on the balcony, lazily reading in the
went downstairs and the policeman gave her a card sun. A little while later Margot appeared in the kitchen
which said that Margot Frank has to report to the S.S. doorway looking very agitated. “Father has received a
Mummy was terribly upset and went straight to Mr. call-up notice from the SS,” she whispered. “Mother has
van Pels he came straight back to us and I was told that gone to see Mr. van Daan.” (Mr. van Daan is Father’s
Daddy had been called up. The door was locked and business partner and a good friend.)
no one was allowed to come into our house any more. I was stunned. A call-up: everyone knows what
Daddy and Mummy had long ago taken measures, that means. Visions of concentration camps and lonely
and Mummy assured me that Margot would not have cells raced through my head. How could we let Father
to go and that all of us would be leaving the next day. go to such a fate? “Of course he’s not going,” declared
Of course I started to cry terribly and there was an Margot as we waited for Mother in the living room.
awful to-do at our house. “Mother’s gone to Mr. van Daan to ask whether we
can move to our hiding place tomorrow. The van
Daans are going with us. There will be seven of us
altogether.” Silence. We couldn’t speak. The thought of
Father off visiting someone in the Jewish Hospital and
completely unaware of what was happening, the long
wait for Mother, the heat, the suspense—all this
reduced us to silence….
When she and I were sitting in our bedroom,
Margot told me that the call-up was not for Father,
but for her. At this second shock, I began to cry….
Margot and I started packing our most important
belongings into a schoolbag. The first thing I stuck
in was this diary, and then curlers, handkerchiefs,
Anne Frank Fonds, Basel/Anne Frank House, Amsterdam/Getty Images
From THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK: THE DEFINITIVE EDITION by Anne Frank, edited by Otto
H. Frank and Mirjam Pressler, translated by Susan Massotty, translation copyrights © 1995 by Doubleday, a
division of Random House, Inc. Used by permission of Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc.
A N N E AT H E R D E S K , J A N 1941.
during the time she was in hiding. In 1944, Anne Frank heard a radio broadcast in which
Gerrit Bolkestein, a member of the Dutch government in exile, told listeners that after the
war, he would like to collect first-person testimonies to document how the Dutch people
had suffered under the Nazi occupation. Bolkestein specifically mentioned that he was
interested in diaries and letters. It was at this time that Anne began revising her diaries to
make them into a more literary piece of work and she focused on her hopes of being a
I A I N G L E N A S O T TO F R A N K . writer after the war.
Diaries have taken on many new forms in the twenty-first century. They range from private
“Writing is very important to journals written on computers to the more public forms of blogs, tweets, and posts on
[Anne] – I believe it’s the only other social networking sites. The following section explores these types of diaries and
way she can make some sense what impact they have on individuals and the public consciousness.
of the world, find solace in
Diaries for the Twenty-First Century: Blogs, Tweets, and Multimedia
these terrible circumstances.”
1 rivate/Public Words: During World War II many governments and media sources
P
O T TO F R A N K tried to tell the world about the systematic genocide of the Jews, but the killing continued.
Can one person’s words make a difference? What if Anne Frank could have anonymously
posted daily entries to a blog instead of to a diary? How might this public and immediate
dissemination of her thoughts and experiences have influenced the way ordinary people
thought about the Nazis’ treatment of Jews? In your opinion, would it have made a
difference? What do we gain and lose by shifting from private diaries to public blogs?
By writing in her diary, Anne Frank was think, or believe. How did they handle it?
empowered to express her thoughts and Send WGBH a compelling message in a
feelings about what was happening all 3 minute video diary entry about how a
around her. WGBH is challenging student, or someone he or she knows, has
storytellers ages 13 and up to do the same. made a difference. Portions of diaries may
Encourage students to describe their lives be selected for broadcast on M a s t e r p i e c e
and how they have overcome being bullied Classic. Submission deadline is May 31st.
or disrespected for the way they look, Students can then return to view the posts.
ELLIE KENDRICK
AND FELICIT Y JONES
AS ANNE AND
M A RG OT FR A N K .
read something—I thought I should read the best thing I could think of about a 13-year-
old girl, which of course is The Diary of Anne Frank. So I went back and reread it, and I
AUTHOR FR ANCINE PROSE
was struck by how beautiful and brilliant it is. And the more I thought about it, the more
I realized how rarely people have really recognized what a conscious, incredible work of
literature it is.
Q: You point out that the diary is not the spontaneous outpourings of a teenager, but rather
a carefully crafted work of literature. Can you talk more about Anne Frank’s process of
revision?
A: She was very conscious of what she was doing; she was very aware; she was very much a
writer. It wasn’t at all, “Let me just scribble this stuff in my diary and publish it.” That wasn’t
the case at all. But also, I think students can learn to revise by studying what Anne Frank
did. It’s really a very practical lesson in why one version of something is better than another
version.
Q: Is “diary,” then, not the best word to use to describe Anne Frank’s writing?
A: Well, not in the way that we normally think of a diary. We think at the end of the day,
or every other day, you sit down and write about the things that happened that day or
yesterday. But when you’re going back and writing things that happened two years ago
that you forgot to explain or didn’t explain clearly or understand only now, that I think is
what we call a memoir….It’s important to emphasize, as I say in the book, that the reason
we know about these variant versions is that when the Critical Edition came out, the
Netherlands Institute for War Documentation got all these forensic handwriting experts
to authenticate that every single word was written by Anne Frank. So it wasn’t as if people
came and added material later; Anne Frank was the one who did the revising.
Q: You talk quite a bit in the book about the ways in which the diary can be a teaching tool.
What do you see as its value in the classroom?
A: There’s so much that can be extracted from it! There are historical lessons: It’s, for many
kids, the first time they find out about the Holocaust. On the one hand, it’s important for
students to realize that this was a unique historical event. There have been other genocides
…but the insane methodicalness of the Nazis has so far been unequalled. It is a unique
Q: Do you think there is something about Anne Frank’s voice that continues to resonate
with young people today?
A: I do. Because the diary was written by a kid, it is almost uniquely suited to be read by a
kid. Salinger and Mark Twain certainly got certain things right about being a kid; but they
weren’t kids when they wrote their books. The diary works on so many different levels.
Q: What was the most unexpected discovery you made in the course of writing your book?
A: I hadn’t known that Anne Frank rewrote the diary, and I think most people still don’t.
And that turned it into a whole different book from the one I was going to write.
The information is out there—it’s not like I discovered it—but somehow no one, for
whatever reason, had paid attention. I kept calling up my friends and reading them the
variant versions and saying, “Am I actually reading what I think I’m reading?” That was
the big discovery.
Readers’ Companion to The Diary of Anne Frank Kustanowitz, Esther. The Hidden Children of the
http://www.annefrank.com/fileadmin/user_upload/ Holocaust: Teens Who Hid from the Nazis (Rosen
material_readersguide.doc Publishing Group, 2002). This book presents first-person
accounts of teenagers whose experiences parallel those of
This guide offers background information, timelines, Anne Frank.
a glossary, historical context, and study questions that
situate Anne Frank’s diary within the broader framework Prose, Francine. Anne Frank: The Book, The Life,
of World War II. The Afterlife (HarperCollins, 2009). Described by The
New York Times as “an elegant study both edifying and
Books entertaining,” this book characterizes Anne Frank’s diary as
Frank, Anne. The Diary of a Young Girl: The Definitive “a consciously crafted work of literature” that Anne revised
Edition, edited by Otto H. Frank and Mirjam Pressler extensively, in the hope that it would someday reach a
and translated by Susan Masotty (Anchor Books, 1996). wide audience.
This expanded edition of Anne Frank’s diary—described Zapruder, Alexandra. Salvaged Pages: Young Writers’
by The New York Times as “the single most compelling Diaries of the Holocaust (Yale University Press, 2004).
personal account of the Holocaust”—restores a significant This anthology of 14 diaries written by teenagers from
amount of material that was omitted from the original all over Europe sheds some light on the personal lives of
edition. young people during the Holocaust. Each of the diaries
David, Kati. A Child’s War: World War II Through the is preceded by some background information about the
Eyes of Children (Avon Books, 1989). Journalist Kati author and notes on the historical context of the entries.
David examines various experiences of children during
World War II. Articles
“Anne Frank’s message for modern times”
Freedom Writers, with Erin Gruwell. The Freedom http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/
Writers Diary: How a Teacher and 150 Teens Used guest_contributors/article5429569.ece
Writing to Change Themselves and the World Around
Them (Broadway Books, 1999). This nonfiction account In this essay, Gillian Walnes, director of the Anne Frank
tells the story of a group of at-risk students in Long Beach, Trust, reviews the new film adaptation of Anne Frank’s
California, who were inspired by Anne Frank to create their diary—which she argues “speaks to today’s young people
own diaries in which they explore intolerance and discover [and] strips Anne of her sainthood”—and discusses the
parallels between their own lives as contemporary teens and global reach of Anne’s story, along with its potential to
that of Anne Frank. In 2007, the book was adapted into a challenge stereotypes and foster tolerance.
film starring Hilary Swank. “The controversy over Anne Frank’s legacy”
http://www.myjewishlearning.com/history/Modern_
Gies, Miep. Anne Frank Remembered: The Story of the
Woman Who Helped to Hide the Frank Family (Simon History/1914-1948/The_Holocaust/Anne_Frank/Diary.
shtml
and Schuster, 1988). The memoir of Miep Gies and her
experiences helping the residents of the secret annex. This article by Tom Nugend discusses the ongoing
fascination with Anne Frank’s diary, as well as the dangers
Holliday, Laurel. Children in the Holocaust and World of relying exclusively on the diary for an understanding of
War II: Their Secret Diaries (Washington Square Press, the Holocaust.
1995). In this collection of diaries written by children of
diverse backgrounds across Nazi-occupied Europe, young
boys and girls recount their experiences of the Holocaust.
Anchor Books, a division of Random House, Inc., publishes the companion book
to The Diary of Anne Frank. For online information about other Random House, Inc.
books and authors see the Internet Web Site at http://www.randomhouse.com.
The Diary of Anne Frank is a Darlow Smithson Productions an IMG Media company in
association with France 2 for BBC. The director is Jon Jones. The screenwriter is Deborah
Moggach. The producer is Elinor Day. Rebecca Eaton is executive producer of
Masterpiece. Laura Linney is the host of Masterpiece Classic. The Diary of Anne
Frank is made possible in part with a grant from The Jewish Federations of North
America. Public television viewers provide funding for Masterpiece.
Quotations from THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK: THE DEFINITIVE EDITION by Anne Frank, edited by Otto H. Frank and
Mirjam Pressler, translated by Susan Massotty, translation copyright © 1995 by Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc. Used by
permission of Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc.
Brief quotes from pp. 4,5,135,136,265 (82 words in total) from Anne Frank: The Book, The Life, The Afterlife by Francine Prose © 2009
by Francine Prose. Used by permission of HarperCollins Publishers.
Cover photo: © Darlow Smithson Productions for Masterpiece