A closing mechanism with a lock which contains both a rotatably supported latch and a pivotably supported pawl, which is spring-loaded toward the latch. The latch is in an open position when the door is open, and, when the door is being closed, it moves first into a prelatching position, in which the pawl engages with a prelatching notch on the latch. A closing aid moves the latch from its prelatching position into a main latching position, in which the pawl is supported on the main latching notch of the latch. When the door is opened, before the release or during the release, the closing aid be activated again not in the same direction as the preceding closing movement but rather in the opposite direction. As a result, the same component, namely, the closing aid, is used to move the latch gradually and gently back into its open position.