Short Story Say Yes

The setting of the short story “Say Yes” takes place within the home of a white married couple. It is conveyed from the point of view of the man, and the style throughout the story is informal, consisting a large quantity of dialogue. The exposition begins in the kitchen of the couple’s home with the husband, who is unnamed, helping his wife, Ann, clean the dishes. As they work, they begin discussing the topic of interracial marriage. The husband takes a negative stance on the proposition, but Ann disagrees. From the man’s perspective, people from different cultures cannot truly “know” each other. On the contrary, Ann believes in the power of love. As the argument continues to escalate, Ann begins to wash the dishes at a faster rate. Interracial

When the man says, “I’ll marry you,” Ann replies, “We’ll see.” In my opinion this means that their relationship is over in her eyes. She does not “know” him anymore and therefore would not say yes to marry a person she does not know. This is why the conclusion refers to her as “a stranger.” They are strangers to each other. Symbolism is evident in this short story. The man turning off the light when in bed represent him “turning off the lights” in the relationship. I assume this because after this happens the relationship is over, and the husband sees the wife as “a stranger.” This is a metaphor in that the two are not literal strangers. They simply discover that they do not know each other like they once believed they did. Similarly, the story also expresses irony. The text says, “He thought of the years they had spent together, and how close they were, and how well they knew each other.” It is clear the man is oblivious to the actual problem because his relationship fails at the close of the story. Even this mans person is that of an exceptional husband. From the passage it says, “He’d overheard a friend of his wife’s congratulate her on having such a considerate husband, and he thought, I try.” He admires how strongly he knows his wife, but the story ends with them becoming like strangers to one

The husband and wife in the story are not young. The text says, “In another thirty years or so they would both be dead.” They have been together for numerous years, and still the story concluded with them being no closer than a pair of strangers. In my mind this story also shows that love is unconditional. The woman wants acceptance for who she is on the inside, but the man is judgmental. Their relationship could not thrive because stipulations were put on the love that they possessed. Through this an exceedingly selfish nature is revealed in the man. These aspects of the story are exceptionally relatable to my everyday life. Especially in high school and in the world today, people can be severely judgmental. Like the wife, Ann, I believe practically all people desire acceptance. However, life is not perfect and I know that I face rejection constantly. Like with the husband’s reasoning, often I have been excluded for insignificant reasons. Simply a change in skin color indicated an adjustment in the person he wanted to marry. In addition to the judgmental aspect, I can also relate to this man’s selfishness and desire for control in that I see people like him everyday. Although, if I am honest with myself, I know I am set my ways at times and believe I am always