In Greek mythology, evils were released when Pandora opened the gods’ sealed container. Hesiod describes the container as a large storage jar holding destructive troubles that had previously been kept away from humans.
When Pandora opens it, the evils escape and spread among humanity. Hesiod names or describes miseries such as disease, toil, and other forms of suffering. The story explains mythically why human life contains hardship even though the troubles were once confined.
The familiar phrase “Pandora’s box” developed later because European retellings translated the Greek word pithos as “box.” In the earliest literary account, the object is a jar, not a small hinged box. The change in container helped create the wording used in modern English.
Hope remains inside after the evils leave. Whether Hope is a benefit, another withheld condition, or simply the final item in the jar has been debated by readers because Hesiod’s wording is compact and ambiguous.