What did we learn about Anne Frank and her diary?
The diary is a glaring realistic account of the down side of
Nazi Germany and the social crimes commited thereby. There is some
controversy over whether it is authentic or not. There was an
analysis of inks and papers found that may not be consistent with
what was available in occupied Holland at that time. The diary is
one of the very few attempts to put a personal spin on the Nazi
Holocaust and inevitably it ends tragically for the lead character.
"Mans inhumanity to man" is a central idea and this is quite
different than the gung-ho war diaries and novels spewed out. Quite
the opposite with home-front Anne Frank! No "fire tubes one and
two, twenty degree spread" for effect. In "The Diary of a Young
Girl" the writer provides a most different slant.