What phrase does Hesiod use to characterize Pandora in the Theogony?

In the Theogony, Hesiod characterizes Pandora as “a beautiful evil.” The phrase captures the poem’s portrayal of her as outwardly attractive but connected with suffering and hardship entering the human world.

The wording reflects a broader theme in Hesiod’s poetry: the gods can present something desirable while concealing a dangerous consequence. Pandora’s beauty is not merely decorative. It is part of the divine plan that makes her compelling to humans, while her arrival marks a new condition of mortal life.

This description is easy to confuse with the later story of the jar. The Theogony gives a compressed account of Pandora’s creation and role, whereas Works and Days provides the fuller narrative involving her gifts, marriage and the opening of the container. The two poems are related but not identical retellings.

Modern readers may also interpret “evil” as a judgment on Pandora personally. In Hesiod’s poem, however, the phrase functions within an ancient patriarchal explanation of human suffering and the origin of women, rather than serving as a neutral modern character description.