In Hesiod’s account of Pandora, Hermes instructed her in speech and gave her a deceptive nature.
Pandora’s creation is described in Hesiod’s Works and Days as a coordinated act by the gods. Zeus orders Hephaestus to make her, while individual deities contribute qualities or adornments. Hermes, the messenger of the gods, gives Pandora speech and is associated with shaping her “shameless” or deceptive character in translations of the Greek text.
The exact wording varies because modern editions translate ancient Greek differently. Some versions emphasize a lying mind, persuasive speech, or a deceptive temperament. These differences do not change Hermes’s identity as the deity associated with these gifts in the account.
Hermes is often remembered mainly as the god of messages, travel, trade, and thieves. In this story, however, his role is part of Zeus’s plan to make Pandora a dangerous gift for humanity. The myth’s portrayal reflects Hesiod’s broader themes about labor, suffering, and the consequences of divine conflict rather than a modern psychological account of women.