In the story "Say Yes" by Tobias Wolff, a couple's argument reveals a deeper question about their relationship. Why does Anne ask her husband a question, when she already knows the answer? She asks her husband, what she thought was an emotional question, hoping to trigger an emotional response. Instead, she received an answer with a more logical approach to the situation that may have lead her to realize her own insecurity about their relationship.
             The argument is the part of the story that reveals the question. Although the narrator claims that they just stumbled upon this subject, it appears that Anne wanted to put herself in such a situation. When the couple got on the topic of interracial marriages and the husband says, " with all things considered it's a bad idea," (p.74) he left himself wide open for such a question. The wife just had to use that to her advantage, which she did. They exchanged their arguments, and it is obvious that she is going to ask such a question, when she gets cut. He tries to end the argument when he says he will finish the dishes, but she says, "That's okay, I'll dry" (p.75). By not leaving the topic alone the reader knows she has more in mind then just discussing interracial marriages.What did Anne really have in mind when she resumed the argument? She had started this argument, and was now to the point where her true motive was to surface. She asks, "Say that I'm black, but still me, and we fall in love. Will you marry me?" (p.76). This is the question that made the argument have significance. She did not care if he was racist or if he felt these marriages were a bad idea, she simply wanted to know the extent of his love for her. She wanted to know if one thing was different about her would he still love her. She knew he did not approve of interracial marriages, so she used that to test the limits of his love. She seemed to figure that if he really loved her like he claims, then he woul...