Hope remains inside Pandora’s vessel after the lid is closed. In Hesiod’s Works and Days, Pandora releases the world’s troubles, then closes the container before hope escapes.
The Greek word used for hope is elpis. The myth does not present a universally agreed explanation of why hope stays inside. Ancient and modern interpreters have debated whether the story treats hope as a comfort preserved for humans or as another condition withheld from them.
The common modern summary says that hope was left behind to help humanity endure the evils released into the world. This interpretation is widespread, but the exact moral meaning is more complicated than the popular phrase suggests.
The myth’s ending is also a source of translation debate. Hesiod says that hope remained within the container, but he does not spell out a single explicit philosophical interpretation. That ambiguity has made the story especially influential in literature and art.