Courage In Frances Goodrich's The Diary Of Anne Frank

There are two different types of courage shown in The Diary of Anne Frank by Frances Goodrich and Albert Hackett. The Diary of Anne Frank is a play about a group of eight people who go into hiding during the Holocaust. The Holocaust was a period during World War Two when the German Nazis were trapping, torturing, and executing many Jews and other people with differences that the Nazis saw as a threat. This was a very scary time for many people, and courage was one big thing that helped get them through. Mr. Frank and Mr.Van Daan are two main characters in the play. Two different kinds of courage are shown between them. Mr. Frank has a protective courage directed toward his family, and Mr.Van Daan has a selfish courage for protecting himself.

Frank shows protective courage for his family. This is shown in scene five when, despite the danger, he goes downstairs to see what the sounds are. “ Mr. Frank: ‘This is Saturday. There is no way for us to know what has happened until Miep or Mr. Kraler comes on Monday morning. We cannot live with this uncertainty.’ Margot: ‘Don’t go father!’ Mrs. Frank: ‘Hush darling, hush.’ Mr. Frank slips quietly out, down the steps and through the door.” (Act one, Scene five from Diary of Anne Frank). This shows that his family was afraid of him going downstairs because they were afraid something bad was going to happen, but he did it anyway. This act of courage helped the whole family in the end, because they found out what the noise was, and could be less afraid, if only for the night. Mr. Van Daan’s courage is