Positive Attitude In Anne Frank

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1For centuries, human beings have demonstrated countless ways to be cruel to other groups of people, especially during times of war. Entire ethnic groups have been targeted for the simple reason that they were born into the “wrong” culture or family. Enslavement, imprisonment, and even wholesale slaughter of people who were thought to be “different” have put black marks on the histories of many countries. This mistreatment by people in authority can damage its victims, even if they survive physically. Yet there are individuals who manage to come through their ordeal and heal. There are also people who, even though they did not survive, continue to inspire us to this day with stories of their courage. One well-known example of such inspiration…show more content…
In Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, Anne’s accounts reveal a positive attitude that later served as inspiration for millions of people. For example, in her diary entry dated Saturday, July 11, 1942, even while living in crowded, difficult conditions while hiding from the Nazis—worried that the entire family might be discovered at any time—Anne notes that “Thanks to Father –who brought my entire postcard and movie-star collection here beforehand –and to a brush and a pot of glue, I was able to plaster the wall with pictures. It looks much more cheerful” (Frank 20). She also writes of the everyday details of her life, such as the chiming of the clock near their hidden location. A similar example from a different situation comes from a Japanese internment camp in the United States from the same period. In Dear Miss Breed: True Stories of the Japanese American Incarceration During World War II and a Librarian Who Made a Difference, Louise Ogawa writes to Miss Breed about the beauty of the Colorado River they had crossed on their way to the incarceration camp. Louise showed that she was trying to find positive things to think about when she wrote, “Yesterday, I ate rice, weenies, and cabbage with a knife. That was a new experience for me!” (Oppenheim 114). These two individuals show that they were trying to keep a positive attitude in extremely difficult circumstances. Although some may argue that a positive attitude didn’t really help Anne Frank, who ended up dying in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp, her strength and spirit while enduring tremendously difficult circumstances have inspired countless individuals across the decades. The diary has been translated into 70 languages, and over 28 million people have visited her home since it opened as a museum in 1960 (The Anne Frank House). Her positive attitude therefore has had a profound impact beyond her own life and cannot
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