In the following entry, Anne describes her efforts to find a neutral topic of conversation while she is doing the dishes with Mrs. Van Daan and Mr. Düssel, and how this tactic not only fails but backfires because of a critical comment that Anne makes of a book which Düssel has recommended. This sets off Düssel and Mrs. Van Daan on a long tirade about how badly brought-up Anne is and how her ideas and opinions are all wrong. Anne comments perceptively: "I suppose it's their idea of a good upbringing to always try to set me against my parents, because that is what they often do" (July 29, 1943). Anne then allows herself to note all of her criticisms of Mrs. Van Daan, describing her as "very pushing, selfish, cunning, and calculating," but adds in a postscript: "Will the reader take into consideration that when this story was written the writer had not cooled down from her fury!"
Anne begins to give a detailed account of the group's daily routine, starting on August 4, 1943, with an account of their evening and night-time routines, who sleeps where, who washes when and how Anne leaves hairs in the bathroom sink. She also describes the strange noises which the house and its "inmates" make during the night. There is also a graphic description of Anne using the potty in the middle of the night, waking up from a dream to the sound of an air raid and scampering into her father's bed in fear. This last episode is illustrated by a verse from the poem which Margot wrote for Anne's birthday. Anne continues her account the following day with a description of lunchtime. Her review of the evening meal becomes an analysis of the characters of the people sitting around the table, their eating habits, their ways of talking, and their general traits. On the whole, these are not very complimentary.
