The Sisters’ Growing Closeness

This flow traces how Anne’s early sense of rivalry with Margot gradually gives way to respect and a more honest sisterly connection.

increasingBearing stren­gth in each eventdecreasing

Comparison and Distance

A Sister as Measure Different reputations Anne described Margot as brilliant and composed, while seeing herself as more troublesome. She felt that adults often praised Margot and judged Anne by comparison. A relationship not yet open Although they shared a family, Anne believed they lacked the closeness she wanted. Her early descriptions reflect loneliness as much as they describe Margot herself.

A Conversation in Bed

Diaries Are Shared A small act of trust Margot and Anne talked late in the day and agreed to read parts of one another’s diaries. The exchange introduced a new kind of openness between them. Closeness grows slowly Anne remained curious about Margot’s plans and thoughts, but recognized that her sister had private feelings of her own. Their connection began through attention rather than a dramatic reconciliation.

A More Generous View

Margot Becomes a Friend Anne notices change Anne wrote that Margot seemed kinder and less dismissive than before. She felt that her sister was beginning to treat her as someone whose thoughts mattered. The sisterly bond deepens This change did not erase the years of comparison, but it made a more reciprocal relationship possible. Anne began to describe Margot with greater affection and less rivalry.

Margot’s Honest Letter

Jealousy Addressed Kindly A frank disclosure Margot admitted that she had felt some jealousy, not over Peter himself but over the companionship Anne had found. She explained that she too longed for someone with whom to share her thoughts. Respect replaces rivalry Margot reassured Anne that she did not believe Peter was right for her in the same way. Their exchange shows affection expressed through careful honesty and concern for each other’s happiness.

A Bond Tested by Deportation

Sisters in the Camps Shared hardship Anne and Margot were deported from Auschwitz to Bergen-Belsen. Their lives, once marked by comparison and separate temperaments, were joined in the same desperate conditions. The diary’s silence The surviving diary ends before their final months. The afterword records that both sisters died at Bergen-Belsen, leaving their strengthened bond largely outside Anne’s own written account.

June 1942

October 1942

January 1944

March 20–22, 1944

Late 1944–early 1945