[blazinfury]

Elements on the periodic table get both oxidized and reduced. The elements that tend to get reduced are the ones closer as you go to to the right of the periodic table. Reduction is defined as an element gaining electrons. As reduction increases from right to left, IE also increases because the elements want to hang on to their electrons. Now electron affinity (EA) is the energy of an atom to gain an electron. Elements want to have an octet and so they want to gain electron, but how is that it takes more energy to gain an electron, if gaining an electron makes the element more stable? At the same time, Lewis bases are classified as electron pair donors. What does not make sense to me is that elements to the right of the periodic table are getting reduced, meaning that they are gaining e-. Or is it that since the trend for base stability is from right to left, the Lewis base strength increases from right to left-- ie those elements are more e- donors and the ones to the right are e- acceptors which is in line with the definition of reduction?

Thank you and sorry for my convoluted question.