The Greek poet Hesiod describes Hope remaining inside Pandora’s container.
In Works and Days, Pandora opens the vessel and releases the troubles held within it. Hope remains inside before the container is closed again. The passage is brief and has generated centuries of debate because readers disagree about whether hope is presented as a benefit protected for humanity or as another thing withheld from people.
The Greek word translated as “Hope” is elpis. It can refer to expectation or anticipation, not only to the modern emotional idea of optimism. Translation choices and interpretations therefore affect how the ending is understood.
Hesiod’s account is the earliest surviving detailed literary version of Pandora’s story. Homer does not provide the standard narrative of Pandora opening the container, and Roman authors later adapt Greek myths in different ways. The familiar moral about hope surviving disaster is consequently based on a short, much-discussed Hesiodic passage.