Ideas of Grandeur

I like the TV show 'Futurama'.  One of the episodes involves all of the characters being issued three hundred dollars and using it in different ways.  The incredibly poor Doctor Zoidberg thinks he is now a rich big shot and goes out to live like a rich person.  However, he scoffs at precious gems ("I ask for rich guy stuff and you hand me shiny pebbles?!"), foie gras and caviar ("Goose liver?  Fish eggs?  Where's the goose?!  Where's the fish?!"), and even a priceless silken mural ("It's not even scratch and sniff?").  It amazes me how different our ideas of great things can be.

If two people were given a thousand dollars to spend on one meal, one person may buy the rarest, most highly lauded food.  Another person may buy a couple thousand $0.39 cheeseburgers from McDonald's.  Both would be very happy with their choices and revolted by the choices of their counterparts.  I suppose it's a matter of taste.  People with different upbringings will have different ideas of grandeur.

Who are your characters?  What do they want?  And I don't mean what prize are they after.  What do they want out of life?  What drives them to desire it?  What kind of culture did they grow up in?  Is it better to have a lot of things of low quality or a few things of exceptional quality?  What would make them feel truly great?  What are they doing to achieve it (or why are they avoiding it)?


And don't forget to ask those questions about yourself.