As an introduction, Hilde Lewinsky states that her paper attempts only to discuss 'the problems of the ego and the narcissistic satisfactions gained through masochism'. Within this limitation, her paper is both interesting and important. Her thesis is: masochistic behavior brings the narcissistic gain of the feeling 'I am able to bear suffering and tension'. Persons who actually are unable to tolerate tension and somehow know about this inability need artificial actions in order to contradict their inferiority feelings. The masochistic behavior has the significance of a proof of what one can stand—of denying the humiliation of a failure where pain was badly tolerated. The idea of 'I want to be beaten' may be simply a denial of a fear of being beaten. 'The masochist pretends to have reached the stage at which the pleasure principle is superseded by the reality principle.'