M.E.

S INDIAN SCHOOL
ABU HAMOUR BRANCH, DOHA – QATAR
NOTES [2024-2025]

Class & Div.: X (All Divisions) Subject: English

Lesson/Topic: From The Diary of Anne Frank Date: 13/04/2024
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Ref. No. ENG-N-14

GLOSSARY

listless = with no energy

confide = to trust
plunked down = put down in a casual way
old fogey = an old fashioned man
ramble on = talk aimlessly for long
incorrigible = (usually) a child that cannot be corrected
ingenuity = originality and inventiveness
exhausted = tired/worn out
chatterbox = big mouth
proceed = to continue
ridiculous = absurd
trait = mannerism
for ages = for years

FORM
Anne Frank's diary consists of a total of 195 entries written between June 12, 1942, and August
1, 1944. The diary is almost always chronologically structured, but after some entries there are
supplements, that Anne added at a later date. Usually, there are only a few days between the
individual diary entries. Anne Frank’s diary is the classic form of a diary or a historical chronicle.

INTRODUCTION
Anne Frank was a German girl and Jewish victim of the Holocaust who is famous for keeping a
diary of her experiences. Anne and her family went into hiding for two years to avoid Nazi
persecution. Her documentation of this time is now published in The Diary of a Young Girl.

THEME OF THE STORY

Throughout the diary, Frank discusses multiple significant themes, including the futility of war and
how it can lead to unnecessary, extreme destruction and devastation. She also explores how
isolation amplifies the feelings of difference and disconnection from family that often accompany
adolescence.
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 ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Anneliese Marie Frank (12 June 1929- March 31,1945) was a German born Jewish Girl victim of
the Holocaust. Her diary posthumously became a classic book published as The Diary of a Young
Girl (originally Het Achterhuis in Dutch; English: The Secret Annex). The diary documents her
life in hiding from 1942 to 1944, during the German occupation of the Netherlands in World
War II. It is one of the world’s widely known books and has been the basis for several plays and
movies. Anne Frank has become one of the most renowned and discussed of the Holocaust
victims.
MAIN POINTS

 Writing in a diary is a strange experience for Anne Frank.

 She writes only to lighten the burden on her heart.
 She feels that paper has more patience than people.
 She wants to keep a diary as she doesn't have a friend.
 Anne’s father was the most adorable father for her.
 Anne’s sister , Margot, was three years elder to her.
 Anne studied at the Montessori till she was six years old.
 When Anne left the Montessori, both she and Mrs. Kuperus were in tears.
 Anne was so sad over grandma’s demise in Jan. 1942
 Mr. Keesing punished Anne for chattering during the class.
 Anne was able to make sure that the joke was on him.
 Mr. Keesing felt impressed the way she wrote an original poem.
 Mr. Keesing was ready to put up with her chattering henceforth.

MESSAGE
There are many important messages in this book, but the most important message is that all
people have the right to live in freedom. Anne's story shows us that just because people may be a
different religion or race, doesn't mean that they should be treated differently.

CENTRAL IDEA
Ann Frank was a 13 years old girl who has so called 30 friends and a lovable family. Still she feels
lonely for the reason that she does not have anyone whom she could confide to talk about her
personal problems. So she thought of writing diary to relieve her of her internal stresses as she
really believes that ‘paper has more patience than people’. She wrote everything in her diary and
affectionately she named her diary Kitty whom she can most confide in with her personal thoughts.
So the diary proves itself her alter ego.

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 JUSTIFICATION OF THE TITLE
‘The Diary of A Young Girl’ was written by Anne Frank, a thirteen year old Jewish girl who gave
went to her feelings in a red and white checkered diary that came to her rescue and throughout
her life it was her bosom friend all along her life. She called the diary ‘Kitty’ as if it were her best
friend whom she could confide. The diary, when published as a book by her father, became one of
the most famous books in the world for the reason that its historical background is Hitler’s
Holocaust and the Second World War. The diary records very personal familial matters that were
stressful to her, and also her frustrations and anguish over the ill-treatment and cruelties by the
Nazis towards the Jews. So the diary achieves the glory of a historical document.

MAIN CHARACTERS
Anne Frank
Anne Frank, a thirteen year old girl was the central character in the Diary of Anne Frank. Anne
was sensitive, intelligent, sharp and gifted. Being a Jew under Hitler’s rule, she had to live
through hard times. The family migrated to Amsterdam to escape persecution. In their hide
out, in her dire situation she needs a confidante that happened to be the diary as she has the
conviction ‘paper has more patience than people’. This shows her understanding of the people.
Mr. Keesing found her as a chatterbox for her tendency to talk, which she attributes as a trait
she received from her mother. Anne’s disposition and talent as a burgeoning writer is revealed
in the way she wrote the wonderful diary. She was humorous to write a funny story; showed
filial piety to father and grandmother; gifted to write the most famous diary ever written.

Mr. Keesing
Mr. Keesing was delineated as a conservative teacher who silenced the students or got
offended by student-talk. He was an old fashioned teacher in Mathematics in Anne’s school. He
was rather strict and could not put up with Anne’s loquacious nature. He calls her a chatterbox
and punished by assigning an essay on chatterbox. Second time a poem of which the joke fell
on him and Mr. Keesing appreciated her sense of humour. Mr. Keesing was good enough not to
give her extra home work ever since.

Comprehension Check
1. What makes writing in a diary a strange experience for Anne Frank?
Ans: Diary writing was a strange experience for Anne because she thought that neither she nor
anyone else would be interested in reading the daily affairs of thirteen years old.
2. Why does Anne want to keep a diary?
Ans: Anna was an introvert and had no close friends to share her feelings with. Hence, she wanted
to keep a diary to share her feelings. She felt that paper has more patience than people. She kept
her name, Kitty.

3. Why did Anne think she could confide more in her diary than in people?

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Ans: Anne lacked social skills and as a young teenager she had a lot of emotions to share. She had
about thirty people whom she could call friends and had loving parents and a sixteen-year-old
sister. On the surface everything was good, but she didn't have a faithful friend. She felt a paper
had more patience and space to hide and express her feelings.
4. Why does Anne provide a brief sketch of her life?
Ans: Anne provided a brief sketch of her life before beginning her diary because she felt no one
would understand her diary if she jumped right into her present-day affairs.
5. What tells you that Anne loved her grandmother?
Ans: Anne used to light one candle for her grandmother during her birthday, just as a poignant
reminder of her love. She stated that no one could understand the intensity of love she had for her
grandma.
6. Why was Mr. Keesing annoyed with Anne? What did he ask her to do?
Ans: Anne was a talkative student in the class. Her interactive nature was not appreciated by her
teacher, Mr. Keesing. He even assigned her extra homework to draft an essay on the subject ‘A
Chatterbox.’

7. How did Anne justify her being a chatterbox in her essay?

Ans: She justified her talkative nature very cleverly in her essay. First, she mentioned that it's a
student’s trait to chatter in the class and second, it's an inherited trait and nothing could be done
about it.

8. Do you think Mr. Keesing was a strict teacher?

Ans: Mr. Keesing was a strict teacher and wanted all the students to practice discipline and be
silent in the class while he was teaching. Someone talking, while he was teaching was not
acceptable to him. He punished Anne for talking in the class and asked her to draft an essay on ‘A
Chatterbox’. She wrote a convincing essay but when she started talking in the class again, he asked
her to draft another essay titled ‘An Incorrigible Chatterbox’. When she further continued testing
his nerves and talking in the class, he asked her to write on the topic ‘Quack Quack Quack, said
Mistress Chatterbox.’ She wrote yet another great piece of art and he acknowledged her content.

9. What made Mr. Keesing allow Anne to talk in class?

Ans: Anne cleverly kept her point for talking in the class every time Mr. Keesing punished her. She
wrote her creative works cleverly and made him laugh through her work. He was impressed by the
way she presented her arguments and finally, he had to accept that Anne would be this way and no
punishment would change her. Hence, he allowed her to talk in the class.
10. Kitty was a trusted friend to Ann- Elaborate.
Despite having nearly family friends, Anne Frank felt lonely without a trusted friend in whom she
could confide to tell all her personal feelings and frustrations. It so happened that she came by a
diary, a bosom friend that she called ‘Kitty’ personifying it. Virtually, the diary is her most trusted
friend as she believed that ‘paper has more patience that people’. She gave went to her feelings

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and it recorded every stream of conscience leaving behind a most valuable treasure for the
readers.
THINKING ABOUT THE TEXT
1. Was Anne right when she said that the world would not be interested in the musings of a
thirteen-year-old girl?
Ans: Anne as a young teenager had no idea how the events of her life would eventually unfold. She
thought no one would be interested I reading her diary but after her death, her diary was published
by her dad and the entire world now reads her diary, with great zeal.

2. There are some examples of diary or journal entries in the ‘Before You Read’ section. Compare
these with what Anne writes in her diary. What language was the diary originally written in? In
what way is Anne’s dairy different?
Ans: Anne’s diary was originally written in Dutch. It became so popular that it was translated into
many languages. She named her diary Kitty and it was very personal for her since she didn't write it
with the filter of someone else reading it. The account, in the beginning, is a formal one. It's not
personal and hence lacks that connection with the reader that the diary entries have. She used to
start her entries with “Dearest Kitty” and would sign off as “Yours, Anne.”

3. Why does Anne need to give a brief sketch about her family? Does she treat ‘Kitty’ as an insider
or an outsider?
Ans: Anne considered Kitty as a new part of her life. She started writing because she knew Kitty
would listen to everything, and had more patience than any human. Since she was not there with
her since the beginning, she wanted to sum up the notable events and people in her life. She was
alone and had no friends. She does give a brief sketch of her close relationship with her father and
grandmother. They both were kind and loving and held a prominent place in her heart.

4. How does Anne feel about her father, her grandmother, Mrs. Kuperus and Mr. Keesing? What do
these tell you about her?
Ans: Anne had a different opinion about everyone. For her, her father was the most adorable
father she could have ever met. Her grandmother held a special place in her heart and she loved
her dearly. She wrote about her in the diary and had an extra candle on her cake as a symbol of her
presence. She loved Mrs. Kuperus. She was her teacher in the sixth form at Montessori Nursery
School and was also the headmistress. They had a teary farewell. Mr. Keesing often troubled her
with apology essays for her being a chatterbox in the class. He was the maths teacher and these
punishments annoyed her. She was a lovable and smart person and emotionally attached to some
people in her life.

5. What does Anne write in her first essay?

Ans: Anne knew the importance of words. She wanted to produce something convincing, instead of
just penning an essay to complete the task. She wanted to present her point about the necessity of
talking and how it's an important trait all students must possess. She also mentioned that she
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would do her best to keep it under control to avoid any further disturbance in class. She continued
the essay by mentioning that it was an inherited trait and nothing could be done about it. Mr.
Keesing was impressed by the points she did put forward and had a good laugh listening to the
essay.

6. Anne says teachers are most unpredictable. Is Mr. Keesing unpredictable? How?
Ans: Anne showed signs of superior creative intelligence and she was quite analytic too. She felt
that a quarter of her class was dumb. She also felt that her teachers were unpredictable and would
randomly promote the kids and fail the ones they do not like. Mr. Keesing was predictable. He
stuck with the rules he laid out for the class. He did not like disturbance while teaching and when
Anne talked in the class, he gave her essays to write. Everyone would have known the punishment
and maintained silence in the class. But in Anne’s case, each time she drafted the essay, he was
impressed by her convincing skills, and by the third time he gave up

7. What do these statements tell you about Anne Frank as a person?

(i) We don’t seem to be able to get any closer, and that’s the problem. Maybe it’s my fault that we
don’t confide in each other.
Ans: Anne had no close friend with whom she could trust and share her feelings. She felt at one
point that it was because of her own lack of efforts that she had no close friend.
(ii) I don’t want to jot down the facts in this diary the way most people would, but I want the diary
to be my friend.
Ans: Anne felt paper had more patience than other human beings. Since she had no friends to talk
to about her feelings, she started writing a diary and named her Kitty to form a more intimate
connection with her.
(iii) Margot went to Holland in December, and I followed in February, when I was plunked down on
the table as a birthday present for Margot.

Ans: Anne was a fun-loving person and we see that in various instances in the text. Here also she
jokes about being a surprise present for Margot.

(iv) If you ask me, there are so many dummies that about a quarter of the class should be kept
back, but teachers are the most unpredictable creatures on earth.
Ans: Anne was confident that she was better than the rest of the class. She felt that a quarter of
her class was dumb and the teachers were unpredictable. She felt it was their wish to fail or pass
any student and randomly decide their fate to pass to the next class.

(v) Anyone could ramble on and leave big spaces between the words, but the trick was to come up
with convincing arguments to prove the necessity of taking.

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Ans: Anne had a good understanding of writing. When her teacher gave her absurd apology essays,
she could still come out with brilliant creative pieces. She took on the work with full vigour and
came up with convincing arguments to prove her point, instead of just filling up the space.

Thinking about Language

I. Match the compound words under ‘A’ with their meanings under ‘B’. Use each in the sentence.

A B

1. Heartbreaking – obeying and respecting the law

2. Homesick -think about pleasant things, forgetting about the present

3. Blockhead – something produced by a person, machine, or organization

4. Law-abiding – producing great sadness

5. Overdo – an occasion when vehicles/machines stop working

6. Daydream – an informal word which means a very stupid person

7. Breakdown – missing home and family very much

8. Output – do something to an excessive degree

Ans:

A B

1. Heartbreaking – producing great sadness

2. Homesick – missing home and family very much

3. Blockhead – an informal word which means a very stupid person

4. Law-abiding – obeying and respecting the law

5. Overdo – do something to an excessive degree

6. Daydream -think about pleasant things, forgetting about the present

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 7. Breakdown an occasion when vehicles/machines stop working

8. Output something produced by a person, machine, or organization

II. Now find the sentences in the lesson that have the phrasal verbs given below. Match them
with their meanings.
(i) plunge in – speak or write without focus
(ii) kept back – stay indoors
(iii) move up – make (them) remain quiet
(iv) ramble on – have a good relationship with
(v) get along with – give an assignment (homework) to a person authority (the teacher)
(vi) calm down – compensate
(vii) stay in – go straight to the topic
(viii) make up for – go to the next grade
(ix) hand in – not promoted
Ans:
(i) plunge in − go straight to the topic
Since no one would understand a word of my stories to Kitty if I were to plunge right in, I’d better
provide a brief sketch of my life, much as I dislike doing so.

(ii) kept back − not promoted

The reason, of course, is the forthcoming meeting in which the teachers decide who’ll move up to
the next form and who’ll be kept back.

(iii) move up − go to the next grade

The reason, of course, is the forthcoming meeting in which the teachers decide who’ll move up to
the next form and who’ll be kept back.

(iv) ramble on − speak or write without focus

Anyone could ramble on and leave big spaces between the words, but the trick was to come up
with convincing arguments to prove the necessity of talking.

(v) get along with − have a good relationship with

I get along pretty well with all my teachers.

(vi) calm down − make (them) remain quite

Even G.’s pleading advances and my angry outbursts can’t calm them down.

(vii) stay in − stay indoors

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I thought of this saying on one of those days when I was feeling a little depressed and was sitting at
home with my chin in my hands, bored and listless, wondering whether to stay in or go out.

(viii) make up for − compensate

This birthday celebration in 1942 was intended to make up for the other.

(ix) hand in − give an assignment (homework) to a person in authority (the teacher)

I handed it in, and Mr. Keesing had nothing to complain about for two whole lessons.

*************

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