The Language of Things

I seem to sign up for a lot of newsletter at work related to both marketing and the industry for which I currently market (crazy complicated engineering stuff).  Today I got a newsletter with an interesting quote from the book "The Language of Things" by Deyan Sudjic.  I think I would have always found this quote interesting, but now that I am a design student I am very intrigued by this definition of design.  Adding this book to my list.

"There is something to understand about objects beyond the obvious issue of function and purpose. It suggests that there is as much to be gained from exploring what objects mean, as from considering what they do and what they look like. Design is the language that a society uses to create objects that reflect it purposes and its values. Design is the language that helps to define, or perhaps to signal, value. It is the language of design that serves to suggest an object's gender, often though the most unsubtle of means, through color, shape, size and visual reference. It is design that reflects a sense of authenticity, or its manipulative opposite: cynical salesmanship."