Summary: December 6, 1943–April 5, 1944

Owing to food scarcity, the Dutch festival of Saint Nicholas Day is celebrated with little poems written for the residents by Anne and her father. For Christmas, the residents exchange small gifts. She dreams about her best friend from school, Lies, and is filled with guilt at living in relative comfort and being unable to help Lies in any way.

Anne’s account of her feelings is extremely, almost achingly, honest in the entry for December 24, 1943. She writes at length about her longing to go outside, to walk about freely, and to simply “have fun.”

Revisiting her diary entries from the previous year, Anne also feels guilty for having had negative feelings about her mother. Reflecting on the past, she believes she was unable to see other people’s perspectives and tended to think only about her own feelings. Anne seems to be becoming more aware of what she believes her mother lacks—a certain sensitivity to the feelings of her adolescent daughter. Although this does not really ease Anne’s pain of being misunderstood, it does help her cope with it.

The reader learns that Anne has started having her period, and that she can feel changes going on inside her body. More than ever, she now longs for a companion, one she could confide in. She, therefore, decides to go up to Peter’s room and talk to him. She and Peter candidly talk about the differences in male and female genitalia. Anne is surprised and relieved that she can have these conversations with Peter without feeling awkward. That night, Anne dreams about a former boyfriend, also called Peter, in a romantic way, and she feels certain, upon waking, that “Peter was still the chosen one.”

Writing about the van Daans, Anne wonders if the things she had regarded as their faults were based on her parents’ opinion of them. Subsequently, she resolves to make her own judgments about people.

Soon, Peter and Anne begin to interact more. Their friendship, in part, fills the void that Anne has been experiencing lately. Peter confides in her about his frustration at being unable to express himself clearly. Though she writes that she is not “in love” with Peter, she nonetheless believes they are cultivating a beautiful friendship.

Anne does find some solace in going up to the attic where Peter works, even though Mrs. Frank does not approve of it. One day, she shares a beautiful, quiet moment with Peter, looking out of his window at the blue sky and the rooftops of the city. In her misery, she finds that this communion with nature, and in general with things more permanent than humans, brings peace to her soul.

In one of her more introspective moods, Anne looks back at the girl she was and the life she led before she went into hiding; she notes that it all seems “unreal.” She also admits that she was more superficial then, and that she will never again be able to live like that.

We learn that Margot is also lonely and sad, and Anne’s friendship with Peter makes her sadder because she yearns for the same kind of companionship. More worryingly, several people who’d been supplying food and ration coupons to the cohort are arrested. Anne also describes some of the awful food the residents are forced to eat as a result.

One day, the residents find themselves stirred by a BBC broadcast containing a suggestion by a Dutch leader in exile about publishing wartime diaries and letters after the war. The residents believe Anne could potentially publish her work.

In another entry, it is evident how mature Anne has become when she realizes that she wants more from life than just being a homemaker.

Analysis: December 6, 1943–April 5, 1944

Anne’s entries give a fascinating insight into the complexities of puberty when she writes of her conversation with Peter about sex. It is natural that Peter and Anne like to speak to each other; they are both seeking a confidant and companionship.

Anne’s reflections about her “former self” indicate that she has become more self-aware. She consciously decides to re-examine her attitudes about people. She does not want to be influenced by her parents’ opinions of others and is becoming more independent.

In these difficult times, Anne also takes to connecting with nature and appreciating its beauty. At the same time, she thinks on a deeper level about her future. She exhibits an awareness of the position of women, an attitude far ahead of her time and her immediate environment.