Anyone who's experienced real gratification knows how much of an emotional high it can be. For different people, it is gained in different ways. Sometimes those overlap, sometimes cause competition and not always enjoyable to the same level as before. The law of diminishing returns insures that the initial gratification will overshadow any that is immediately following.

This could be why the greatest Greek philosophers taught moderation in all things. They knew from their past learnings, both from experience and teachings, that we all want to find the things most gratifying in life. It might be... seeing what is beyond the next mount as Alexander the Great must have felt with half of Macedonia at his back... to that first bite of decadent chocolate out of the gilded candy box.

Great people have become victims to that which satisfies them the most. Be it alcohol for a general named Ulyesses S. Grant or personal vanity and ego of another named Napoleon; once they received a taste for it, their fates were somewhat predetermined to follow the course before them. Another addiction includes illegal substances, such as Opiates, which used to be legal and allowed in the wild-west era in various Oriental dens. Sex remains a mania for some, with nymphomania being the woman that has the emotional dependancy for the physical acts. Cigarettes with their nicotine is another example of a mental dependancy with a slight physically-addictive property. Chocolate, coffee or tea, certain foods, adrenalin rushes from extreme or dangerous activities, role-playing for the creative genius or even pet adoration qualify as areas where we can get more satisfaction than others could ever hope to gain.

Self-restraint is a key to nuturing a higher level of gratification from whatever is enjoyed. For romantics, it's the cliche that explains "absence makes the heart grow fonder". Either that is driven by forgetting the bad points of the person absent or that the good things about them are missed all the more. Maybe it is both. Absence or abstinence helps us savor that favoured dish more by not having it every day. Forced poverty for Marie Antoinette would have almost certainly insured that she would have not only enjoyed her banquets, but to have enjoyed the city and it's people all the more.

Personal recognition is extremely gratifying and a powerful motivator. But it too has it's downside. For once the glorious fame is lost, it leads to depression and lack of motivation. Only strong character helps to foster activities for self and selflessness. So some actors become activists. Some ex-diva singers write children novels. Some past politicians do commercials to raise funds for disasters. Not as glorious, no, but when doing things for others, ends up being self-gratifying.

Anyone here want to admit what they find gratifying.. maybe even to excess?

The only thing that I really find satisfying is the unending care of those who love me, with whom I can reveal myself, at any stage of my life. Without these few people, I'd be lost. With them, I can overcome my self made obstacles.

I over gratify on nicotine, food, & internet.

Wise words.

I think these examples can't so easily solved by self-restraint. I think what is worth examining is WHY these particular things are gratifying to these particular people. For alcoholics, alcohol is MORE than just gratification--it's chemical dependency. A nymphomaniac may have other issues (psychological or biological) that feed a sex compulsion. In both of these examples, the person is not simply letting a gratification go out of hand--there are other, deeper, forces at work.

Good conversation, intellectual stimulating activities(reading, writing), and creativity (photography, piano) are all gratifying to me as well. However, I am someone of the flesh as well. Good food, good sexual pleasure, and a good alcohol buzz are also gratifying.

I definately qualify for over-gratifying on the 'Net.

If we can not realize our need (or addiction) for the gratification, then no, there will not be any self-restraint. Even if there were, sometimes it would not be enough, because events could compel us forward. It's very possible that the underlying reason for Grant's alcohol dependancy is the inability to accept those around him with lower I.Q.s. When he was drunk, he was likely more able to accept others.

No, Hitler and Napolean could not restrain themselves or listen to their advisors/other generals when they wanted to acheive their goals. Hubris (pride) can be attributed for their downfall, for thinking they would always find victory. Some feel that goes for others as well.

Fascinating observations.

This gets at the root of Tradgedy in the original sense. To the greeks, an event like Katrina or the mudslides in the Phillipines weren't tradgedies, they were catatrstophes.

Tradgedy in the original sense is when something like Grant's dependency on alcohol destroys them. It is some internal flaw, or hubris, that brings them crashing down from their lofty positions that makes a person or event, tragic.

That being said, I think Psych brings up a good point that frequently with addictions there is something else going on that the addiciton is a coping mechanism for. For example, vets suffering from post traumatic stress disorder stereotypically become alcoholics or drug addicts to deal with the pain of the traumas of war and combat they experienced. Likewise, there's probably some deeper rooted psychological issue behind why a nymphomaniac is one.

Or they could just really like sex.

But I'm more inclined to believe as Psych does that addictions. or extreme over gratification is usually symptomatic of some deeper problem inherent in a person.

Possible, yes. It's also possible that he was simply genetically more predisposed to having a chemical dependency on alcohol...

No confession Boru? How unfair! :o <_< :P