Anne Frank the Writer

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• Learn more about Anne Frank, diaries, European history, Holocaust, literature, and World War II.

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Anne Frank the Writer is presented by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in honor of its 10th anniversary. “The Diary of Anne Frank, posthumously published in 1947 and eventually translated into almost 70 languages, is one of the most widely read works of non-fiction in the world. Anne’s legacy, however, extends beyond her diary. Between the ages of 13 and 15, Anne wrote short stories, fairy tales, essays, and the beginnings of a novel. Five notebooks and more than 300 loose pages, meticulously handwritten during her two years in hiding, survived the war. They reveal a young woman who had great ambition to be a writer and was exploring her craft.”In this online exhibition, glimpse many of her original manuscripts, examine historical photos and artifacts, watch interviews with Buddy Elias (Anne’s closest living relative) and others.Students may wish to submit a comment about their reactions to Anne’s diary, which could be published on the website.This website also provides links to related sources on the Internet.

Perhaps no other young writer has reached as many people through their work. Is the power and reach of The Diary of Anne Frank due to the tragic circumstances of her life and death, or was she a gifted writer, an example of the lost potential of the one million murdered children of the Holocaust? Anne Frank, described as curious and precocious, was suddenly forced into seclusion to escape Nazi persecution. She turned to her writing, first perhaps out of loneliness but in time as an outlet for creativity, a means of personal expression, and eventually, as a dream for a future career. Although most readers are familiar with her diary they may be surprised to find out that many of the entries were drafts, initially, and she reworked her diary in response to a 1944 radio broadcast encouraging personal record keeping to provide historical record of life under German occupation. Through the months of confinement she edited her work. The familiar “Dear Kitty,” for example, appeared only sporadically in the original diary, yet her re-writes all include this conversational lead-in and friendly tone; she considered this an effective literary tools for publication. In addition to the famous diary, Anne Frank wrote short stories, fairy tales, essays, and the beginnings of a novel handwritten in five notebooks and more than 300 loose pages. She proudly refers to these as her “pen-children.”

This online exhibit of Anne Frank’s writing, presented with photographs, images of her writing, and audio narration, allows exploration of her works through a variety of approaches. For a linear path through the works, beginning with the first diary entries and ending with “Give!,” an essay about social justice, click on the link to “Launch the Exhibition” on the exhibit’s Home Page or the link to “An Unfinished Story” on the top navigation bar. The Anne’s Original Writings page provides thumbnail images of all the writings explored in the exhibition’s linear presentation, the reader can click on any one to examine it further. Finally, a complete transcript of the exhibit is provided.Students considering Anne Frank’s writing may look carefully at the famous quote from the Final Entries section of the transcript: “In spite of everything I still believe that people are really good at heart.” Taken out of context, these words seem to speak of Anne’s hopeful view of humanity, but read in context their message is quite different. Sara J. Bloomfield, museum curator, discusses this further in an interview.Other topics to explore through writing include responses to the restrictions on Jews and what Anne and her sister chose to pack from the Going Into Hiding section of the transcript and a more general topic: what are the roles of letters, diaries and other personal narratives in recording history and as reflections on human nature?Anne Frank the Writer is a companion website to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s exhibit entitled Life in the Shadows: Hidden Children and the Holocaust opening in Washington, D.C. on August 28, 2003, and running through May 12, 2004. The Holocaust Memorial Museum’s 10th anniversary exhibition of Anne Frank’s literary work is available through December 12, 2003.