In Hesiod’s account of Pandora, Epimetheus receives her as a wife despite Prometheus’s warning.
Epimetheus is a Titan whose name is commonly interpreted as “afterthought” or “hindsight,” contrasting with his brother Prometheus, whose name suggests forethought. Hesiod presents Epimetheus as lacking good judgment. Prometheus warns him never to accept a gift from Zeus, but Epimetheus accepts Pandora when she is sent to him.
Pandora’s arrival connects Zeus’s punishment of humanity with the release of suffering into the world. In Hesiod’s Works and Days, the story is not primarily a tale about a woman finding a mysterious box. It is a myth explaining why human life includes toil, sickness, and other hardships. Epimetheus’s acceptance of Pandora is important because it shows the consequence of ignoring Prometheus’s caution. Later retellings often describe Pandora as Epimetheus’s wife, while early Greek versions focus more on Zeus’s plan and the jar than on domestic details.