Hermes gives Pandora her voice and teaches her deceptive speech in Hesiod’s Pandora myth.
In Works and Days, Zeus instructs the gods to prepare Pandora after Prometheus has angered him by giving fire to humanity. Hephaestus shapes her, while other gods provide qualities and adornments. Hermes contributes the power of speech and a deceptive or untrustworthy character, making Pandora part of Zeus’s punishment.
Hermes is best known as the Olympian messenger, but Greek mythology gives him many roles, including guide, trickster, herald, and patron of communication. His association with persuasive or deceptive speech fits the particular function Hesiod assigns him in Pandora’s creation.
Different retellings simplify the scene and say only that “the gods” made Pandora. That summary is broadly accurate but loses the individual contributions named by Hesiod. Apollo is also associated with prophecy and music, while Ares represents warfare; neither is the god identified with Pandora’s speech in this episode.