Apple: Skin to the Core

Eric Gansworth

Nonfiction | Memoir in Verse | YA | Published in 2020

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Part 1-Part 2, Poem 24

Part 2, Poems 25-44

Part 2, Poems 45-60

Part 3

Part 4

Key Figures

Themes

Index of Terms

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

Beta

Discussion Questions

Index of Terms

Eee-ogg

Eric Gansworth uses the term “Eee-ogg” several times in Apple but never defines it. His poem “The Word for Gossip” is not included in Apple but was published on Poem-a-Day in 2020. The poem explains that “Eee-ogg” translates roughly to “they say.” It can also be translated as “gossip.”

Onondaga

Only one of Gansworth’s grandparents is Onondaga (the other three are Tuscarora), but he is enrolled as a member of the Onondaga Nation. Onondaga membership is matrilineal. Members of this Nation live primarily in parts of New York and Ontario.

Skywoman and Skyworld

Haudenosaunee cosmology includes Skywoman and Skyworld as elements. According to Haudenosaunee creation stories, before the world as it exists today, people lived on the Skyworld. One day, a pregnant Skywoman fell to the ground. With the help of several animals, she managed to live on Turtle Island (North America). The Haudenosaunee people are descendants of Skywoman, and they return to the Skyworld when they die.

Tuscarora

Gansworth grew up on the Tuscarora reservation in New York. Much of his family is Tuscarora. Because he attended school on the reservation, Gansworth learned some Tuscarora while growing up. The Tuscarora Nation is part of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy.

Wampum

Purple and white beads, Wampum beads are traditionally made from seashells. They are woven into belts that record Haudenosaunee history and law through their patterns. When European settlers first made contact with the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, the two parties formalized a treaty through a wampum belt. The treaty assured both parties that they would leave each other to their respective lifestyles; however, the settlers did not ultimately abide by this agreement.