1. The Play of the Diary of Anne Frank
Act 1, Scene 3

2. Act 1, Scene 3: The realities of life begin to set in.
Anne finds it difficult to contain herself after 10 hours of silence:
Her father calls her “wild, self-willed”.
Mr van Daan thinks she needs a “good old-fashioned spanking”.
She is unfavorably compared to her sister.

3. Act 1, Scene 3: Mr van Daan belittles Peter for struggling with maths.
He complains about the food.
Mrs van Daan flirts with Mr Frank.
She is outraged when Anne spills milk on her expensive fur coat.

4. Act 1, Scene 3: Jan Dussel, a Jewish dentist, is in trouble.
He comes to stay in the Annex “just for a night or two”.
He is not pleased to have to share a room with Anne:
“According to him, nothing - I repeat nothing - is right about me, my appearance, my character, my manners.”

5. Act 1, Scene 3:
Dussel brings news from the outside world. The Jewish community is plagued by:
Call-up Notices
House searches
Disappearances
Deportations
Everyone thinks that the Franks escaped to Switzerland.

6. Act 1, Scene 3:
The themes that are explored through the characters and incidents in this scene are:
Persecution
Conflict
Generosity

7. Questions & Answers:
Why does Mrs van Daan care so much about her fur coat? What does it represent to her?
Mrs van Daan cares about the coat because her father gave it to her. It is one of the few reminders that she has of the luxurious life she lived before the war. It is her link with the past.
Mr Frank immediately agrees to take in the Jewish dentist. Mr van Daan does not think it is a good idea. Who do you think is right? Explain why.
You tell me …
“You make us seem very heroic.” Do you feel that by helping the Franks, Miep and Mr Kraler are heroic? Why do you think they are prepared to risk their lives to help Jews?
They feel compelled to help because they are decent human beings who are opposed to the Nazis. As Mr Kraler says: “We simply don’t like Nazis. We don’t like their methods. We don’t like anything about them.”