Apples: The good, the bad, and the generic

The Old Adam and Eve
(E. J. Sullivan, 1898)

According to biblical lore, one bad apple did spoil the whole bunch  (of us, that is).  But was it really the apple that did it?  And... was it really an apple, anyway?

The last in a series of things or events is the one that tends to get scapegoated.  First, God commands that every fruit in the Garden of Eden may be freely eaten except that of the Tree of Knowledge.  Hmmm...  Which fruit do you think humans would therefore crave?  

The serpent then sweet talks Eve.  Eve partakes of the "forbidden fruit."  She offers some to Adam, who also eats it.  Mankind falls.  Scapegoat conclusion: It's obviously the rotten apple's fault.

Notice that even God uses the word "fruit," but we humans tend to say "apple" instead.  Throughout history, the word "apple" has been generically used for many types of fruit.  Hence, "a rose by any other name is still..."  an apple (which sort of makes sense since the apple is technically part of the Rosaceae family).

The apple species is termed "Malus," which is strikingly similar to the Latin word for evil: malum.  The association between apples and evil goes back a long way.  Even among the Ancient Greeks, apples had a bad rap.  The Greek goddess of discord, Eris, angrily tossed an apple into a wedding party, just to stir things up a bit.  The Trojan War ensued.

Nevertheless, this fruit does have some biblical merit.  Once past Genesis, apples begin to come into their own.  Deuteronomy, Proverbs, Zechariah and the Psalms refer to a greatly valued person or object as "the apple of your eye."  Proverbs 25:11 compares "a word fitly spoken" to "apples of god in settings of silver."  The Song of Solomon uses apples (and most things) in a sensual context.  Joel 1:12 equates the withering of an apple tree "with a sense of profound loss."

Even today, we still carry quite an ambivalence concerning apples.  Although we fear the possibility of a razor-ridden specimen, we avidly bob for them at Halloween parties.  We use them to keep our teachers close by, but our doctors far away.  So when somebody asks, "How do you like them apples?" - we need to scratch our heads and think for a good long while...

Resources

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adam_and_Eve

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_(symbolism)