Anne Frank: A Hidden Life

Words: 1086
Pages: 5

Anne Frank, a German-Jewish teenager who was forced to go into hiding during the Holocaust, once said “If we bear all this suffering and if there are still Jews left, when it is over, then Jews, instead of being doomed, will be held up as an example.” When she said this she meant that if she held on to hope, people will realize their mistakes and will honor those who they harmed. World War II started in 1939 and ended in 1945. During this short period of time over 60 million people were murdered because of their religion. This was stated in “Anne Frank a Hidden Life,” by Mirjam Pressler. Throughout world war II, Anne Frank and her friends and family had to take many risks that she didn’t always know if the outcome would be positive or negative, …show more content…
Yet they all came together due to the persecution the Jewish community was facing during the war. At first, Anne lived with her mother Edith, her sister Margot, and her father Otto Frank. Then Mr. and Mrs. Van Pels came with their son Peter. Finally Mr. Pfeffer was the last to join them in the secret annex (Pressler 60-64). It was very dangerous to have so many people in one place because if one person messed up, all of them that lived in the small place would be caught. The Secret Annex didn't have any way of knowing if the Natzis were coming for them, they just had to hope they didn’t do something that would make them get caught. There were still men and woman who personally believed that the persecuted families didn't deserve the horrible acts being done to them. They would help these families to hide from the natzi’s. The people that helped the Secret Annex stay alive included victor Kugler, Johannes Kleiman, Elizabeth Voskuijl, and Meip Gies (Pressler 106-122). They all defied the law to save their friends, putting their lives in danger. They are part of the reason the people in the annex lived for so long. Throughout the two years Anne and her friend lived in hiding, they had to be very careful. It wasn't just their life they had to worry about, they have to worry about the others lives