Examine Mr. Kraler, born Victor Kugler, in Anne Frank's The Diary of a Young Girl. Study his character traits and quotes, and review his role in Anne Frank's hiding.
Updated: 11/21/2023
Mr. Kraler in The Diary of a Young Girl | Role & Quotes
Table of Contents
- Mr. Kraler in The Diary of a Young Girl
- Role of Mr. Kraler
- Victor Kugler's Later Life, Death, and Legacy
- Quotes About Mr. Kraler
- Lesson Summary
Frequently Asked Questions
How would one describe Mr. Kraler?
He is brave, hardworking, and compassionate. Mr. Kraler is brave by being willing to protect the members of the annex; he is hardworking because he constantly tries to keep the company moving forward and to make the situation in the annex better, and he shows his compassion by ensuring that the families are as comfortable as possible.
What happened to Mr. Kraler?
Mr. Kraler was arrested with the members of the annex. He was sent between several concentration camps before eventually escaping and making his way home.
Why did Mr. Kraler help the Franks?
Mr. Kraler worked for Otto Frank. So, as an employee of Otto's, he worked with the families in the annex because he knew about them, their plans, and the building in which they were hiding.
Table of Contents
- Mr. Kraler in The Diary of a Young Girl
- Role of Mr. Kraler
- Victor Kugler's Later Life, Death, and Legacy
- Quotes About Mr. Kraler
- Lesson Summary
The Diary of a Young Girl is the recovered diary of the teenager Anne Frank. To escape Nazi persecution during WWII, Anne's family hid in the annex above her father Otto Frank's company. While in hiding, they received aid from Otto's most trusted employees, and Victor Kugler was one of these trusted helpers. In her diary, Anne refers to him as Mr. Kraler, even though Kugler is his actual surname. The same is true for the Van Daan family, as their actual surname is Van Pels. In early publications, the pseudonyms remain, but in later ones, the characters go by their given names.
 |
To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member.
Create your account
When Mr. Kugler was starting out with Otto Frank, the company was exploring new items to sell, like pectin, an ingredient that is helpful when making jam. Mr. Kugler helped Otto Frank manage orders and helped the company to find new avenues to increase sales. In 1941, Mr. Kugler began taking over management of Gies & Co, a company Otto created as the spice division of his business. Then, on July 6, 1942, Mr. Kugler began his duties of helping to take care of Anne, her family, and the Van Pels, who were in hiding in the annex above Otto Frank's business.
Mr. Kraler's Character Traits
Anne comments that Mr. Kugler is "up to his neck in work." He does so much work during the day, then takes care of the annex's residents that he often seems overwhelmed by all of the responsibility and stress. Though he does not seem to complain outwardly about the pressure or frayed nerves from the hard work, he commits a great deal of time to taking care of everyone. Anne also states that Mr. Kugler always "hurries up the stairs, gives a short but solid knock on the door and comes in either wringing his hands or rubbing them in glee, depending on whether he's quiet and in a bad mood or talkative and in a good mood." Regardless of how brave he is, the stress that Mr. Kugler is under can easily supersede the bravery of helping them out in the first place. Even still, Mr. Kugler constantly looks for opportunities to strengthen their security. This shows his compassion and desire to ensure that the family stays safe.
Mr. Kraler and Anne Frank
Mr. Kugler is one of the primary helpers, who bring the Franks, Van Pels, and Mr. Dussel materials and supplies to sustain themselves. There are mixed emotions toward Mr. Kugler from the different annex members.
On several occasions, they work on mundane projects for the company. For example, Anne explains, "Yesterday we had our hands full. We had to pit two crates of cherries." Then, later, she writes, "We have a new pastime, namely, filling packages with powdered gravy. The gravy is one of Gies and Co's products. Mr. Kugler hasn't been able to find anyone else to fill the packages, and besides, it's cheaper if we do the job. It's the kind of work they do in prisons. It's incredibly boring and makes us dizzy and giggly." Anne is not terribly upset about helping out this way, because it keeps her busy, and she always appreciates the work Mr. Kugler does for them.
 |
Mr. Dussel, on the other hand, is less than pleased. On one occasion, Anne explains, "Our beautiful radio was taken away last week. Dussel was very angry at Mr. Kugler for turning it in on the appointed day." Though Mr. Kugler is simply doing what is expected of him, and often going above and beyond for the residents of the annex, Mr. Dussel and the Van Pels can't help but be frustrated with Mr. Kugler. In contrast, Anne is always conscious of how Mr. Kugler is putting himself at great personal risk for their well-being. She says, "We always thought there was enough room and food for one more person, but we were afraid of placing an even greater burden on Mr. Kugler and Mr. Kleiman" when the residents first consider taking in Mr. Dussel. But, clearly, Mr. Dussel does not realize or recognize this risk as strongly as Anne does.
Mr. Kugler recognizes the kindness and appreciation he gets from Anne. Anne even notes, "Mr. Kugler makes me happy every Monday by bringing me a copy of Cinema & Theater magazine." With the exception of gifts for birthdays and the like, the other annex residents do not often receive such gifts as these. While everyone else in the annex believes this frivolous, Mr. Kugler recognizes that it keeps Anne's hope moving forward rather than stuck in the annex.
Arrest of Mr. Kraler
As Anne's diary wears on, she continues to mature, and a couple of entries before the journal ends, Anne writes her famous line: "I still believe, in spite of everything, that people are truly good at heart." Then, two entries later, Anne writes her final entry on August 1, 1944, and the diary ends abruptly. This is because on August 4, 1944, the building is raided. In the process, Mr. Kugler was forced to move the bookshelf aside to reveal the annex, and the Gestapo arrested everyone within. Additionally, they arrested Mr. Kugler as well as Johannes Kleiman, another helper.
After their arrest, the two helpers were sent to Amersfoort Concentration Camp. Mr. Kleiman was released because of his poor health, but Mr. Kugler had to stay. From Amersfoort, he went to Zwolle and then on to Wageningen. However, Mr. Kugler escaped in a daring feat while on a march. In March of 1945, he was able to flee a line of prisoners when Allied planes began attacking. Eventually, after traveling haphazardly for some time, he was able to make it home.
To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member.
Create your account
Later on in life, in the year 1955, Mr. Kugler emigrated to Toronto with his new wife, Loes van Langen. In Canada, he spent time working as an electrician and insurance agent. Upon retirement, he began speaking publicly about Anne Frank, her time in the annex, and the helpers' part. Mr. Kugler and the other helpers received a Yad Vashem Medal, which is also known as a Righteous under the Nations award, in 1973. Unfortunately, Mr. Kugler began suffering from Alzheimer's later that decade, passing away on December 14, 1981.
To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member.
Create your account
- "Because so many houses are being searched for hidden bicycles, Mr. Kugler thought it would be better to have a bookcase built in front of the entrance to our hiding place." Anne explains in her diary on August 21, 1942 that Mr. Kugler always reached for opportunities to make the family safer and less vulnerable. This speaks to the compassion that he felt for those hiding in the annex.
- "Mr. Kugler dropped by and told us that the Fokker aircraft factory had been hit hard." Anne committed this to paper on July 26, 1943. In addition to providing the families with supplies, Mr. Kugler also fed them news and updates. Even with his help, with little communication with the outside world, the families were often left without information and completely uninformed. In wartime, this is nothing short of troubling.
- "Mr. Kugler through his enormous responsibility for the eight of us, which is sometimes so overwhelming that he can hardly speak from the pent-up tension and strain." Anne wrote this on May 26, 1944 and takes special care to notice how Mr. Kugler feels throughout the time he helped the families in the annex. Though he may try to hide his nerves, Mr. Kugler is definitely nervous and scared for himself as well as for those in the annex.
To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member.
Create your account
Anne Frank kept a diary while her family was in hiding during the Nazi persecution of WWII. Anne writes of Victor Kugler, a helper of the residents hiding in the annex. In her diary, Anne calls him Mr. Kraler, even though Kugler is his given name. Mr. Kugler is an integral part of Otto Frank's business as the person who runs the spice division of the business, which sits below the annex. While Anne is grateful for everything Mr. Kugler does for her and her family, not everyone feels this way. The Van Pels and Mr. Dussel, for example, are irritated by his actions. Mr. Kugler enlists the residents of the annex for tasks with which the business needs help. For example, Anne describes pitting cherries and even putting gravy mix in packages. Mr. Kugler shows Anne special attention by bringing her movie magazines that help to bring in the outside world and to make her time in the annex more enjoyable. After the diary's last entry, the annex members were arrested, and Mr. Kugler was, too. Though he was then taken to several concentration camps, he was eventually able to escape and come home.
To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member.
Create your account
Additional Info
Pseudonyms
In Anne Frank's The Diary of a Young Girl, Anne uses fictitious names for the characters to protect their privacy. In early publications, her father Otto Frank chose to stick with most of Anne's chosen pseudonyms, except for his family, but in later publications, Mr. Frank chose to honor the helpers by using their real names.
Mr. Harry Kraler is the pseudonym that Anne gives to Victor Kugler, who is one of the people that helped the Franks, the van Daans, and Mr. Dussler hide in the annex. For this lesson, we will use the definitive version of Anne's journal, which was published in 1989, and uses Mr. Kugler's real name. Let's learn more.
Mr. Frank's Business
In order to understand the role that Mr. Kugler played in the Frank's life, it is important to understand Otto Frank's business, which originally just sold pectin for jam. Mr. Kugler helps run the business.
Because making jam is seasonal, Mr. Frank expands his business by partnering with Hermann van Pels (Mr. van Daan), who is an expert on meat seasonings because of his background as a butcher. Their new company specializes in spices and spice substitutes.
Once the Nazis began to take over Jewish-owned businesses, Mr. van Pels and Mr. Frank were forced to resign from their positions in their own countries. The pectin division was run by someone else, while the spices division was renamed Gies and Co, and Mr. Kugler took over operations.
Very few people knew about the hide-out in the annex. Even a couple of the other warehouse assistants were unaware.
Hiding and Helping the Jews
The reason the hide-out exists is because Mr. Kugler created a laboratory with a sink, stove, hot-water heater, and a bathroom in that space. Mr. Kugler formerly used it to create spices. It is Mr. Kugler's idea to have a bookcase built at the entrance of the annex to make it less conspicuous.
In order to run the business in a way that will support all of them, Mr. Kugler has to work extra hard, but also puts the people in hiding to work. It both gives them something productive to do and helps business.
Anne writes, ''Yesterday we had our hands full. We had to pit two crates of cherries for Mr. Kugler to can.'' On another occasion, Mr. Kugler also keeps them busy by ''…filling packages with powdered gravy. The gravy is one of Gies & Co.'s products. Mr. Kugler hasn't been able to find anyone else to fill the packages, and besides, it's cheaper if we do the job.''
Unappreciated and Stressed
Mr. van Daan and Mr. Dussel get irritated with Mr. Kugler, seeming not to appreciate the extent to which Mr. Kugler has gone to help them. The van Daans are even annoyed when the others make a spice cake for Mr. Kugler's birthday because they think they should be the ones to get cake.
But Anne realizes that the secretary, Miep, ''and Mr. Kugler bear the greatest burden for us, and for all those in hiding-Miep in everything she does and Mr. Kugler through his enormous responsibility for the eight of us, which is sometimes so overwhelming that he can hardly speak from the pent-up tension and strain.''
Each day, Mr. Kugler joins the annex family to listen to the radio and again during food distribution time. Anne writes, ''Mr. Kugler hurries up the stairs, gives a short but solid knock on the door and comes in either wringing his hands or rubbing them in glee, depending on whether he's quiet and in a bad mood or talkative and in a good mood.''
Mr. Kugler's Sacrifice
Still, he goes out of his way to make sure everyone is taken care of. After most of the office gets sick with diphtheria, Mr. Kugler has an even greater burden.
Yet, he still manages to help make sure holidays and birthdays are special by providing small gifts, such as cakes, punch, or extra sugar to for those in hiding. Anne writes, ''Mr. Kugler makes me happy every Monday by bringing me a copy of Cinema & Theater magazine.''
Mr. Kugler does show his disapproval when careless behavior on the part of the tenants leads to some near-misses. Despite his warnings, the tenants continue to leave the windows open. When they are caught, Mr. Kugler is arrested and taken to a labor camp without a trial. After nearly eight months, Mr. Kugler escaped and hid for the rest of the war.
After the war, Mr. Kugler gaves the rights of the business back to Otto Frank, the only survivor of the Frank family. Mr Kugler later immigrated to Canada, where he lived until his death in 1981.
Lesson Summary
In Anne Frank's The Diary of a Young Girl, Mr. Kraler is a pseudonym used in early publications of the diary to protect Mr. Kugler. Mr. Kugler was Mr. Frank's employee, but once Jewish businesses began to be confiscated, Mr. Frank was forced to resign and allow Mr. Kugler to take over Gies and Co., the spices division of the company. Mr. Kugler is hard-working, innovative, and thoughtful. He puts in extra hours to support the eight people in hiding, although he does delegate work to them when possible.
Additionally, he provides small extras, such as birthday gifts and weekly movie magazines for Anne that make their stay tolerable. Despite his hard work, some of the residents (the van Daans and Mr. Dussel) don't seem to appreciate his sacrifices or listen to his warnings. When those in hiding are arrested, Mr. Kugler is also arrested and sent to a work camp, but manages to escape and immigrate to Canada.
To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member.
Create your account
Register to view this lesson
Are you a student or a teacher?
Unlock Your Education
See for yourself why 30 million people use Study.com
Become a Study.com member and start learning now.
Become a MemberAlready a member? Log In
BackResources created by teachers for teachers
Over 30,000 video lessons
& teaching resources‐all
in one place.
I would definitely recommend Study.com to my colleagues. It’s like a teacher waved a magic wand and did the work for me. I feel like it’s a lifeline.
Jennifer B.
Teacher
Back
Mr. Kraler in The Diary of a Young Girl | Role & Quotes
Related Study Materials
Explore our library of over 88,000 lessons
Browse by subject