le? and they even have their own language. His protestation that I like hearing them talk because it makes him feel happy reveals much about hi personal ity: his belief that African Americans are inherently foreign to whites, his condescending attitude, and his sense of otherness from himself? He needs something completely unlike himself to bring him pleasure The husbands negative response to Anns question of whether he would marry her were she African American indicates the pervasive and destructive nature of his racism Analysis of husband The husband in the story is generally an unsympathetic character. He appears to have racist feelings and seems to be dishonest with himself. He claims to apprec iate the stability his life with Ann provides him, but he still makes efforts to undermine it. He refuses to take responsibil ity for his actions. Throughout the evening, he is seen to be less than a genuine person; he does things for effect rather than out of a genuine sincere desire. Within the confines of the story, his most significant trait is his rejection of his wife, which she takes quite seriously, much to his surprise. By the end of the story the husband demonstrates yet another shift in mood excitement as he realizes that, in certain ways, his wife is unknowable to him. The final scene has him awaiting his wife in their darkened bedroom, imagining that she is a stranger that he seems to embrace, as demonstrated by the excited pounding of his Writing devices Wolff has often been likened to other writers of his generation such as raymond Carver and richard Ford. In his short stories, Wolff practices a direct,even non-dramatic, style of writing. This is certainly the case in his story "Say Yes"which takes as its backdrop an average evening in the life of a married couple. When the conversation delves into an issue on which the couple do not agree, the relationship experiences a newfound rockiness. The husbands reaction to this argument demonstrates the secret undercurrents that run through relationships Assignment I. How do you think the husband and wife will resolve their situation? Do you think they will resolve it? Write a scene that takes place the following day 2. Analyze the husband in terms of whether or not he is a racist character 3. Write a counterargument to the husband s statement that African Americans dont come from the same culture as whites6 from white people? And they even have their own language. His protestation that I like hearing them talk because it makes him feel happy reveals much about his personality: his belief that African Americans are inherently foreign to whites, his condescending attitude, and his sense of otherness from himself? He needs something completely unlike himself to bring him pleasure. The husband’s negative response to Ann’s question of whether he would marry her were she African American indicates the pervasive and destructive nature of his racism. Analysis of husband The husband in the story is generally an unsympathetic character. He appears to have racist feelings and seems to be dishonest with himself. He claims to appreciate the stability his life with Ann provides him, but he still makes efforts to undermine it. He refuses to take responsibility for his actions. Throughout the evening, he is seen to be less than a genuine person; he does things for effect rather than out of a genuine, sincere desire. Within the confines of the story, his most significant trait is his rejection of his wife, which she takes quite seriously, much to his surprise. By the end of the story, the husband demonstrates yet another shift in mood: excitement as he realizes that, in certain ways, his wife is unknowable to him. The final scene has him awaiting his wife in their darkened bedroom, imagining that she is a stranger that he seems to embrace, as demonstrated by the excited pounding of his... Writing Devices Wolff has often been likened to other writers of his generation such as Raymond Carver and Richard Ford. In his short stories, Wolff practices a direct, even non-dramatic, style of writing. This is certainly the case in his story “Say Yes” which takes as its backdrop an average evening in the life of a married couple. When the conversation delves into an issue on which the couple do not agree, the relationship experiences a newfound rockiness. The husband’s reaction to this argument demonstrates the secret undercurrents that run through relationships. Assignment 1. How do you think the husband and wife will resolve their situation? Do you think they will resolve it? Write a scene that takes place the following day. 2. Analyze the husband in terms of whether or not he is a racist character. 3. Write a counterargument to the husband’s statement that African Americans don’t come from the same culture as whites