In Hesiod's account of Pandora's Box, hope remained inside after the other evils escaped.
Hesiod's Works and Days says that the various destructive forces flew out of the vessel when Pandora lifted its lid, while hope stayed within. The Greek word is elpis, commonly translated as “hope,” although scholars debate whether it means ordinary optimism or an expectation connected with future suffering.
The story therefore has an unusual ending. Humanity is exposed to disease, toil, and other troubles, yet hope is not lost from the human condition. Later readers have often interpreted this as a comforting gift that allows people to endure hardship.
A common mistake is to say that Pandora released hope into the world. In the wording of Hesiod's account, hope is the thing that remains inside. That detail has generated centuries of debate because it can be read as either a blessing preserved for humanity or a force withheld from it.