In Greek mythology’s Pandora story, hope was the last thing left inside Pandora’s jar.
Hesiod says Pandora replaced the lid after the jar’s other contents escaped, leaving only elpis inside. Elpis is usually translated as “hope,” although scholars have discussed whether the word can also imply expectation or anticipation.
The myth does not clearly say whether hope remained as a benefit for humanity or was kept away from humans. That ambiguity has produced two major interpretations. One sees hope as a consolation that survived among the newly released evils; another argues that hope was itself withheld, so humans would face suffering without it.
The text also does not list every released evil in a modern catalog. Hesiod describes diseases and countless other troubles spreading among people. Later retellings often simplify the scene into “all the evils escaped, but hope stayed,” which is memorable but less precise than the ancient wording.