It’s a cop out, but I had to choose the More Information option because Mary’s statements and behavior simply don’t make any sense.
Couple more remarks:
Hi JsGoddess. Hi Dio. When I said that “Love is just a word” it meant that people have widely different interpretations of it and that it’s defined more meaningfully by actions than by a --possibly fanciful-- concept of what being in love means.
Diogenes: The reason poll results would be meaningful is that they could show (sorta) that it’s very rare for a woman to agree to marriage simply because someone asks her twice.
That would indicate your interpretation of the dynamic presented in the OP is likely flawed. There would be no evidence supporting your position and statistical evidence against it.
In the OP, the very first part of Mary’s answer is 'I want to say yes." And then she gives tells the guy something she thinks he should know before they get married. You, Dio, insist that
–She’s really saying no
–We respondents should just go by what she says
–She’ll agree to marriage if the guy asks her twice, because she just can’t put up with that badgering.
It’s bad reasoning. I don’t know what else to say.
If her concept of what being in love means is fanciful, don’t marry her. If she’s right, don’t marry her. If she’s wrong, don’t marry her. Marry someone who can honestly and forthrightly say they love you, not someone who either doesn’t know what it means or doesn’t feel it.
You seem to be saying we should ignore what she says in favor of assuming the best.
This isn’t difficult stuff. If she doesn’t know what she wants, she isn’t a good candidate for marriage. If she’s right that she doesn’t love him, she isn’t a good candidate for marriage. If she’s wrong and she does love him, she isn’t a good candidate for marriage.
People who do not know themselves should not get married.