I liked the quote, “But it’s when we start testing our metaphors for their social and cognitive usability that design can become really powerful”. I feel like this means that no matter how simple a metaphor is, there will be a deeper meaning. Also, this means that there will usually be an underlying meaning to any metaphor, no matter how simple or complex. With this greater meaning, I believe that you will need to put in more thought in order to understand exactly what the metaphor is trying to explain or tell you. This also ties in with the idea of “furniture” that Erard used to demonstrate the concepts that can help you understand what a metaphor is trying to explain. The idea of “furniture” in a metaphor really fascinates me as I think that even though the meanings of some metaphors may seem very obvious, you made need some help to fully understand what the metaphor really means.

I believe that the best or most meaningful metaphors are left to be interpreted by people on purpose. When we are given the opportunity to think for ourselves and try to figure out what a metaphor means, then we will find some deeper meaning with enough thought. Most metaphors will have a “right” answer that is thought to be the correct meaning by most people who reads it. However, I believe that if you look under the surface, then you will attain a greater understanding of what the metaphor means. In my opinion, this will work with any metaphor, no matter how simple or complex it is.