In Hesiod’s account of Pandora’s container, Hope remained inside after the evils escaped.
The story appears most fully in Hesiod’s Works and Days. Pandora opens the container, and destructive forces fly out into the world. The text then says that Hope remains inside, because Pandora replaces the lid before it can leave.
This ending has produced centuries of debate. Some readers view Hope as humanity’s consolation: suffering exists, but people retain the ability to expect better. Others note that the Greek word elpis can mean expectation more broadly, so its role is not automatically positive. The myth does not explicitly give the modern moral interpretation of Hope as a simple blessing.
Popular retellings often say that Pandora “released hope” along with the evils. That reverses Hesiod’s physical sequence. In the original account, Hope is the one thing left within the container when it is closed.