In the Pandora myth, Prometheus stole fire from the gods and gave it to humanity. The act made fire a symbol of technology, knowledge, and civilization, but it also provoked Zeus, who punished Prometheus and arranged a separate punishment for humans.
Ancient sources do not tell the story in exactly the same way. In Hesiod, Prometheus’s conflict with Zeus includes a deceptive sacrifice and the theft of fire. In Aeschylus’s tragedy Prometheus Bound, Prometheus is presented as a major benefactor who gives humans several arts and skills as well as fire.
Pandora’s creation follows this conflict in Hesiod’s narrative. Zeus’s response is not simply to reclaim fire; he introduces a new source of suffering into human existence. That connection is why Pandora’s story is often taught alongside the Prometheus myth, even though the two figures play different roles in the sequence of events.