This volume discusses a number of topics all showing how metaphor, traditionally considered merely a decorative device, acts as a driving force in our society. Topics covered include how metaphor affects financial decision making, how it inspires learning and discovery, the role of metaphor in advertising, uses of metaphor as a tool to achieve emotional insight and psychological change, and how life without metaphor, as experienced by some people with autism spectrum disorders, significantly changes the way s/he interacts with the world.