#Pandoras box full#

The beautiful butterfly was hope, which Mercury had hidden amongst the evils, taking pity on mankind when he realised what the gods were plotting.But one way to resolve this apparent inconsistency is to say that the jar represents humankind’s control over things, and whilst they cannot control the ills of the world once they have been let out into the world, they can keep hope alive inside – whereas to let that out too would be to see it dissipated and dissolved into the air.īut was ‘hope’ really the last thing left in Pandora’s box (sorry, jar)? The word Hesiod uses is Elpis (Ἔλπις), which can mean ‘hope’ but is often also translated as meaning ‘expectation’. Slowly it unfolded its sparkling wings and brushed them against Pandora, healing her wounds. ‘Let me out! Let me out!’ Believing that nothing inside the box could be worse than the horrors released, they opened the lid once more.Īll that remained was a tiny crumpled butterfly, shivering in the corner. Taking her into his arms he comforted her as the evils flew out of the castle and spread across the land.īetween her sobs, Pandora and Epimetheus heard a tiny little voice calling from the box. Flinging himself from his horse, he ran to her aid. Epimetheus heard her cries as he rode into the courtyard. Pandora screamed and screamed with pain and fear.

Disease, misery and death swooped and buzzed around stinging her. Slowly lifting the lid, she looked inside.īut to her surprise there were no glittering jewels, glamorous dresses, golden coins – instead the gods had filled the box with all evils now known to mankind. Making sure she was not being watched, she crept up to the box and gingerly opened the clasp. However one day, when Epimetheus was out hunting, she could bear it no longer, her curiosity overcame her.

#Pandoras box full#

All the time she wondered what was inside could it be full of glittering jewels, glamorous dresses, golden coins? Whenever Epimetheus was away and no one was around, Pandora would creep up to the box and run her fingers over the polished wood and the golden clasp. Before he left, he made them promise never to look inside it.įor days Pandora couldn’t take her eyes off the box. He asked Pandora and her husband to take care of it while he was away. The couple lived happily together until … one day Mercury, the messenger of the gods, arrived with a mysterious box.

However his brother, Epimetheus, fell in love with the beautiful Pandora and decided to marry her. Prometheus was frightened that the gods were trying to trick him to get their own back and he decided to ignore her. He knew the gods were angry with him as he had stolen fire from them and given it to humans. One day, the gods created a beautiful woman called Pandora and took her to Prometheus. Whenever they tired of quarrelling amongst themselves, they turned their attention to playing with people, as you might play with your toys. Long ago and far away, high up amongst the clouds of Mount Olympus, the gods enjoyed a life of pleasure and quarrelling.