Summary

[I] 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.

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Tensions in the annex run high after the break-in, and no one can shake the feeling of impending doom. On top of that, Peter forgets to unbolt the front door, so Mr. Kugler has to smash the window to get in. The air raids on the city are incredibly heavy. The Registry of Births, Deaths, and Marriages in The Hague is bombed, requiring new ration cards to be issued.

On April 15, 1944, Anne gets her first kiss. Although Peter only kisses her “half on [her] left cheek, half on [her] ear,” Anne suddenly feels she is very advanced for her age. She writes that the longer the war drags on, the more difficulty she has imagining ever being liberated. Anne talks to Peter about female anatomy, which she has wanted him to do for a while. She then muses about trying to have a fairy-tale published in a magazine.

Anne writes about her schoolwork and also includes the family’s war-ration recipe for potato kugel in her diary. She asks Peter if he thinks she should tell her father about their relationship, and he believes they should. Mr. Frank says that he thinks it is not a good idea to carry on a romance in the annex, and he asks Anne if Peter is in love with her. Mr. Frank tells her not to take it too seriously and that it is her responsibility to show restraint.

Anne wonders about the point of the war and laments that money is being spent on fighting rather than on medicine, the poor, and the arts. She reflects on human nature and concludes that until all of humanity undergoes a profound change, people’s tendencies toward violence will lead to endless wars and destruction. Anne writes that she is “young and strong and living through a big adventure.” Her father complains that she is going upstairs to see Peter too much. Anne wants to explain why she visits Peter a lot, so she writes her father a letter, which makes him very upset. He tells her it is the most hurtful letter he has ever received. Anne feels deeply ashamed and decides to try to improve herself.

Anne tells her diary the story of her family, including her parents’ biographies. She writes that her wish is to become a famous journalist and writer. Mr. Frank has lost a bet with Mrs. van Daan about when the war will end, so he has to give her five jars of yogurt in payment. Anne hears that anti-Semitism is becoming more common among the Dutch, and she is deeply disheartened. She grows depressed again and wonders if it would not have been better to suffer a quick death rather than go into hiding. She counteracts this thought by writing that they all love life too much.

On June 6, 1944, D-Day, the BBC announces that the Allied invasion of France has begun. The residents of the annex are very excited. Anne turns fifteen and writes that the liberation is going “splendidly.” Her mood improves, and she contemplates her love for nature and the question of why women are thought of as inferior to men. Near the end of July, Anne writes about an assassination attempt on Hitler and hopes it is proof that the Germans want to stop the war themselves. On August 1, 1944, Anne describes her new insights into her own character and muses that perhaps she could become the kind of person she wants to be “if only there were no other people in the world.” Anne’s diary ends abruptly.

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