"The greatest pleasures are born of conquered repugnancies." Marquis De Sade

As living organisms our instinct is to survive, pass our genes on to the next generation, and seek that which brings us pleasure and the absence of pain. Masochism is characterized by the tendency to derive sexual gratification from one's own pain and humiliation. At face value masochism contradicts those very instincts of self preservation. We have been socialized to believe that the emotions caused by shame, pain, and humiliation should be avoided for the sake of maintaining one's honor and status. Our very survival, in this increasingly interdependent world, rests on our reputation as dignified, ego-serving creatures. It should be in our nature to maintain and increase our prestige and esteem. To seek that which makes us bleed, degraded, used, and abused is therefore counter-intuitive and should not even exist in our evolutionary wiring. Or should it?