In Hesiod’s Works and Days, hope remained inside Pandora’s jar after the troubles escaped.
The poem says that the jar contained the destructive conditions that trouble human life, including illness and hardship. When Pandora opened it, these forces flew out and spread among humanity. Hope stayed behind beneath the jar’s rim because the vessel was closed before it could escape.
This detail has generated centuries of interpretation. Some readers view hope as a consolation left for humanity, while others note that Hesiod’s wording and the jar’s confinement make its role less straightforward. The text does not simply explain hope as an unqualified reward.
Modern retellings often say that Pandora “released hope” along with the evils. That reverses the basic detail in Hesiod’s account: hope is the one named thing that remains within the container.