The Diary of a Young Girl June 6, 1944 - August 1, 1944 Summary

The long awaited invasion has occurred, it is D-day, June 6, 1944. The families are not sure whether or not to believe it, they had been tricked before by reports of trial landings. But they hear on the radio an address by General Eisenhower, he is speaking to the French citizens. He tells them, "This is D-day. Stiff fighting will come now, but after this the victory. The year 1944 is the year of complete victory; good luck." This news coming from General Eisenhower convinces them the invasion is real. They are over joyed, it is almost too much to comprehend. The fact that they might in the near future be free again to live their lives as they did before the war.

The weather for the landing was bad, rain and gale force winds made the fighting much more difficult for both the Allies and the Germans. This weather lasted for a few weeks causing irritable behavior from those in the "Secret Annex" especially Mrs. Van Daan.

Anne celebrated her fifteenth birthday on June 13, 1944. She received several presents from the others along with presents from Miep, Elli, and Mr. Kraler. Anne learns about the courage of Winston Churchill on her birthday. He was on a torpedo boat visiting French villages that had been liberated when the boat he was in shelled the coastline. Anne felt this was a brave action for Churchill and that he appears to be fearless. She would like to emulate this type of behavior. Being without fear seems to her the ultimate in courage.

Anne finally comes to the realization that Peter loves her not as a girlfriend, but as a friend. He still has great affection for her, it is just that he cannot bring himself to confide in her the way Anne imagines a boyfriend would.

She longs to be outside with nature. Anne had not been interested in nature before she had to go into hiding, but now it is a major interest of hers. She recognizes this interest is because she has not been allowed to go outside the entire time she has been living in the "Secret Annex".

They learn on June 23, 1944, the English have started the attack on Cherbourg. This means Anne and the others could be free by October 10, 1944. This brings a sense of hope and anticipation to everyone. The bad news is the potato supply is dwindling, so they are now forced to count exactly how many potatoes each person is allow each day.

The fighting is going very well for the Allies. The Germans are starting to evacuate non-military women and their children to Germany and parts of Holland that are closer to Germany. Anne is feeling hopeful for the future.

Anne is starting to tire of Peter's lack of self-confidence. He is constantly telling her how weak he is and how much he wishes he could be like her. She sees that he is using her as a support when he feels unable to say or do what is necessary. Anne feels that Peter is a person who looks for the easy way to solve a problem or to make money. Her word for this type of thinking is laziness. She feels that a person must work to be happy and to make something of their lives. She doesn't understand people who are unwilling to work. Peter lacks any sort of religious belief, he does not think there is a God. Anne's perception of religion is that it is a moral compass to live your life by. It gives a person a goal to strive for, the goal of making themselves everyday a better person. She feels bad that Peter does not have religion in his life.

The family is given a large amount of strawberries from Mr. B., the chief representative for the business. They use the berries to make juice, jams, and jellies. One day as they were processing the strawberries the doorbell began to ring. This frightened the group because they had been not keeping quiet while they worked. They thought they were alone in the building and therefore could be a little louder than usual. Peter quickly went downstairs to see who was at the door. The first time it happened Henk arrived to tell them it was just the mailman at the door. The second time Peter and Anne listened from the stairs, hearing no movement, Peter yelled out "Elli!" as there was no answer he called her name again. This time Mr. Koophuis told them to go back upstairs immediately because the accountant was in the building. This was frightening for everyone living in the "Secret Annex".

Anne is happy because an officer of the German army had made an attempt to kill Hitler. She felt this showed how discouraged the other soldiers were with how Hitler was directing Germany through the war.

She also goes into a long entry about how there are two sides to her personality. The one that everyone sees of the happy, frivolous young girl and the other of the serious Anne. She has a hard time keeping up the happy side all the time, then she becomes the irritable Anne. She is the Anne who is constantly being criticized by the adults in the group.

This is where the diary ends. With Anne trying to figure out her place in her family and the world. She is excited at the prospect of leaving the "Secret Annex" and living a normal life. The others in the group are also looking forward to the end of their confinement and isolation. They are all looking forward to living the rest of their lives without fear. Unfortunately, we know that the hope was misplaced and that all of them except Mr. Frank die in the concentration camps.



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