Say Yes

“I went to school with blacks, I’ve worked with blacks, and we’ve always gotten along just fine. I don’t need you coming along now and implying that I’m a racist.”

After Ann pushes back on her husband’s rejection of interracial marriage, he defends himself with this quote. His attempts to reassure her that he’s not racist—because of his historical proximity to Blackness—highlight his racial bias and overall fear of Black Americans as foreign.

“‘They don’t come from the same culture as we do. Listen to them sometime—they even have their own language. That’s okay with me, I like hearing them talk’—he did; for some reason it always listed his mood…”

This quote presents the husband’s perspective of Black Americans. He sees Blackness as a monolith, assuming all Black Americans talk the same way and engage with the world similarly. His admiration for their speech highlights the comfort he feels with a stereotypical understanding of Blackness.

“How could you understand someone who comes from a completely different background?”

A quote from the husband, revealing his central argument. He does not believe people of different races and nationalities could ever understand one another. However, it’s unclear whether he sees this lack of understanding as a biological or a social reality.

“‘Different,’ said his wife. ‘Not the same, like us.’”

This is a facetious comment from Ann that challenges the husband’s stance on interracial relationships. As she pokes fun at him, she angers him, increasing the tension between them. It serves as a turning point wherein the husband questions whether they really are “the same.”

“He took the hand and dabbed at her thumb with the cotton. The bleeding had stopped. He squeezed it to see how deep the wound was and a single drop of blood welled up…”

This quote is a reference to Blackness. Ann’s cut finger references “the one drop rule,” and the cotton used to mend the wound deliberately reminds the reader of the social past of Black Americans and that race has been socially imposed onto Black Americans by white Americans.

“‘Look,’ he said, taking a reasonable tone, ‘this is stupid. If you were black you wouldn’t be you.’”

The husband sharpens his argument. Through this comment, he’s able to undermine his wife’s stance on interracial relationships. She concedes that she wouldn’t be her if she were African American, but it’s unclear whether or not she wouldn’t be her because her race would make her inherently “foreign” or because her treatment as a Black woman in America would affect her sense of self.

“‘Well?’ she said, and stepped close to him. Her eyes were even brighter. ‘Will you marry me?’”

Ann’s question is the central tension between the couple. The story hinges on this moment. The husband does not give his wife her desired answer, sustaining the tension between them until the end of the story. This moment also considers the unconventional gender roles between the two: Ann proposes, a traditionally male act, while the husband cleans, a traditionally female act.

“He wiped the counters and the stove and scoured the linoleum where the drop of blood had fallen. While he was at it, he decided, he might as well mop the whole floor. When he was done the kitchen looked new, the way it looked when they were first shown the house…”

After Ann is angered by his lack of a response, her husband is left alone to clean the kitchen. His impromptu decision to clean the entire kitchen, especially where the “drop of blood” had fallen, implies his desire to cleanse himself of the argument, the conversation of race, and his fear of Blackness.

“He thought of the years they had spent together, and how close they were, and how well they knew each other, and his throat tightened so that he could hardly breathe.”

This quote is an admission of guilt. The husband feels bad that their conversation about interracial relationships has put them at odds. Their misunderstanding feels as if they are in an interracial relationship, but in order to assuage that fear, he returns to the past, thinking about the several years they’ve shared together.

“The two mutts from down the street had pulled over the garbage can again. One of them was rolling around on his back and the other had something in her mouth…Normally he would heave rocks at them, but this time he let them go.”

After the argument between the husband and the wife reaches a climax, the husband takes out the trash and ruminates. He sees “two mutts,” which implies impurity. His decision not to throw rocks at them indicates a shift in his character.

“The house was dark when he came back inside. She was in the bathroom. He stood outside the door and called her name. He heard bottles clinking, but she didn’t answer him.”

This is an ominous moment as the husband reenters the house. The house is completely overwhelmed by darkness, which mirrors his thoughts, which are overwhelmed by their discussion of Blackness and race relations. It’s unclear what bottles are clinking, and this ambiguity adds to the mystery surrounding Ann. Neither the reader nor the husband knows what she will do next.

“But from a sound in her voice, a level and definite note that was strange to him, he knew that he had to come up with the right answer.”

For the remainder of the story, the husband does not see his wife. He only hears her. She becomes difficult to read. He wants to reconcile, but he struggles to understand her tone from the other side of the door. He highlights a strangeness in her voice, forcing him to question how well he really knows her.

“He leaned against the door. ‘I’ll marry you,’ he whispered. ‘We’ll see,’ she said. ‘Go on to bed. I’ll be out in a minute.’”

The husband finally concedes and admits to his wife that he would marry her, regardless of her race. However, it is unclear, from her tone, if the wife is satisfied with his response. Her response—“We’ll see”—is ominous, implying that there’s something still to be revealed about their relationship.