The Greek Myth Of Pandora And Her Box

Hesiod’s versions of the Prometheus/Pandora story and the book of Genesis’s story of Eve’s act of eating the forbidden fruit both introduce a female figure whose actions are connected with the seeming introduction of evil into the world. At first glance, it appears that the Genesis story is more compelling than Hesiod’s account at explaining the origin of evil because its monotheistic structure makes the logic behind the evils far more clear and straightforward than Hesiod’s logic. The act of disobedience by Eve seems fully her own fault while God (Yahweh) is faultless. However, Genesis is too simple because the story of Prometheus/Pandora is far more complex. The Hesiod story of Prometheus/Pandora is more compelling than Genesis because the conflict allowed disputes between the gods in its polytheistic worldview rather than one god making Hesiod more compelling at explaining the evils of the world.

In the story Pandora, Zeus gives Pandora a jar of everything terrible that you could ever imagine. Zeus told Pandora whatever she does to do not open it. So of course what does she do, she opens it. Which Then release many terrible things into mankind like diseases and poverty. Pandora knew after she did it that it was a very bad idea. She knew this decision would have some life altering decisions. The only thing left in the box once everything else came out was hope because it was to keep people going when things were bad. This story just shows that one decision you make big or small can have a be affect of everyone. Just something as simple as someone telling you you will pay if you open it, so please don’t but you still do it anyways. Always think before you do and think about who it might affect in the process and question yourself if you are really willing to hurt them in that process.

However, once Pandora arrived she brought with her countless suffering, illness and hardships. This is significant as according to this poem, woman is portrayed as the being the reason behind all the sufferings in this world. This sets the tone for the rest of the poem as the idea that females are dangerous to males is repeated several times throughout. Pandora brings with her a jar, famously known as Pandora’s box. This box when opened releases a myriad of illnesses and misfortunes amongst mankind. Hesiod mentions that one item, hope, did not escape the jar, “only hope was left within her unbreakable house.” Hesiod does not mention why hope remained in the jar and what significance it has but after reading the whole poem, one can conclude that hope remaining in the jar signifies how men have no hope against women, for without them, they would die alone but with them they have to withstand their conniving

The Goddess Persephone was a very beautiful and well worshiped goddess, she was loved by all, do to how she was very kind and caring as well as being able to bring warmth to the earth also known as spring. Persephone is the daughter of Zeus the king of all gots and the daughter of Demeter the goddess of the harvest. Indeed she was very beautiful, or at least enough to catch the eye of the ruler of the underworld. He then fell instantly in love with her and knew he had to have her. So he devised a plan to take her as his own. One day Persephone was picking flowers for her mother Demeter when she noticed a beautiful scent and decide to follow it. After wandering off from the field she looked up at birds fluttering and suddenly the sky began to

The two myths “Loo-Wit The Firekeeper” and “Pandora’s Box” may have different origins, but they both share many of the same qualities. For example, they both had symbols and objects that represented the theme of their stories. The theme in “Loo-Wit The Firekeeper” was that we want what we don’t have because humans are naturally curious and sometimes greedy. A symbol that represented these theme was fire. The text states on page 482 “You must keep the fire burning there to remind people that their hearts must stay good”. This represents the theme because later in the story when the brothers start quarrelling again, the creator takes away the fire and gives it to Loo-wit. This causes the two brothers to realize that the quarrelling

The myth of Pandora starts with two brothers, Epimetheus and Prometheus, who were Titans that tasked themselves as spokespeople for their creation from clay: mankind. Epimetheus was in charge of creating the creatures that were to roam the Earth while Prometheus was to distribute them. While most animals were armed or protected by their physical attributes, man stood alone naked and bear to all those that may attack. Thus, Prometheus, the mischevious of the two, deceived Zeus one day into giving mankind the best portion of a sacrificed bull, leaving behind bare bones and fats for the gods. Outraged and offended, Zeus then took the gift of fire away from mankind to leave them in the cold and darkness. However, Prometheus once again outwitted Zeus and stole unwearying fire for men to have the intelligence necessary to sustain their lives. As punishment, Zeus chained Prometheus to a rock in Caucasus where an eagle ripped apart and devoured his liver every day, which then regenerated each nightfall as result of his immortality. Although Prometheus caused him the most angst, Zeus believed the kind-hearted Epimetheus deserved to struggle as well in a form that would not only punish him but also the brothers’ creation of mankind. Zeus called out for Hephaestus to construct the most beautiful, intelligent, and brave women named Pandora to be the new companion of Epimetheus in place of Prometheus. However, he also graced her with one other quality: curiosity. So, Zeus delivered his

The very creation of women was set as a punishment to man because Prometheus, son of Iapetos, tried to trick Zeus into eating bones and then, with the tube of a fennel, steals fire to give to mankind. Zeus then proclaimed, "To set against the fire I shall give them an affliction in which they will all delight as they embrace their own misfortune." Out of Zeus' anger came Pandora, the first woman. Zeus ordered Hephaestus

“Zeus, angry with Prometheus for stealing fire and giving it to man, had the gods create another gift, a woman of great beauty and evil, from whom womankind is descended… she opens a jar from which pains and evils escape, leaving only hope caught within the lid.”(Murray 91). Murray shows the direct link between the actions of Prometheus and Pandora, as does Hesiod, but Murray accomplishes this actively through analysis of the events, whereas Hesiod does so in an additional passive sense, through the use of structure in the Theogony.

Prometheus is given a (possibly) eternal torment, to be chained to a column and have his liver torn out daily. His brother Epimetheus is given what we may infer is punishment of comparable magnitude: the first woman. In the Works and Days, we learn she is called Pandora, "The Gift of All." This gift comes with many alluring qualities: she looks "like a goddess immortal, having the lovely shape of a virgin," she is taught by Athena weaving, and Aphrodite has"shed on her charm, …mak[ing] her an object of painful love and exhausting desire" (Theogony, 62-66). She is dressed by Athena in a "silver-white gown (575) and adorned by the Graces and "our Lady Persuasion" with golden necklaces, and crowned by Horai with flowers, as well as an intricately crafted golden crown, which, while a "marvel to look at," depicts "terrible monsters." And if these charms aren’t enough to lure a man into the clutches of woman, men who do not marry and have progeny are doomed to "baneful old age with no one to care for his needs,"(604-5) and his collateral heirs will divide his goods.

Nonetheless by the fifth-century Hesiod’s story of Pandora became a part of Greek education and while most Athenians wouldn't have remembered all of the details they surely would have remembered Pandora’s pithos (box). While Pandora is primarily known for this, there is evidence that shows that the Athenians preferred to view her benevolent temperament. The pottery created in Athens towards the middle of the fifth-century depicted her as a charitable character. A Calyx-Krater, by the Niobid Painter (Figures 2a & 2b) depict Pandora as an Earth-goddess or deity. We know the woman depicted is Pandora because to the top register shows scene from the birth of Pandora.

Moving forward to the “Prometheus myth,” the similarities between the stories are a bit more difficult to identify, but not impossible. There are also comparisons between characters of the myth and of Frankenstein. Again, the creature is the focus of these comparisons, as he can be said to similar to the Titan, Prometheus. Each character tries to offer their assistance to humanity, but only receives punishment in response to their actions. For Prometheus, Zeus, otherwise known as Jupiter in Roman mythology, seeks what he thinks is retribution for the Titan disobeying his direct order of not granting the humans with fire. Zeus creates the “perfect” woman, Pandora, and sends her to Prometheus and his brother, Epimetheus. Pandora disobeys one of the only requests given to her: do not open the box she was given. Instead of adhering to the instructions, the woman lets her curiosity get the better of her, causing all kinds of horrors to be released into the world, which then had “the bottom

Before she was given to Epimetheus as a bride the gods and goddess decided to gift her. Aphrodite gave her beauty and Hermes made her really skilled at lying and being deceitful. Athena clothed her, and Apollo gave her musical

Prometheus steals fire and gives it to men by tricking Zeus, which makes Zeus angry. Zeus originally hid the fire because he knew it would make a man’s work much easier. As a result of Prometheus giving men fire, Zeus decides to create the first woman, which is his way of getting revenge. The first woman is created by Hephaestus out of earth and water. Also, the name Pandora means “all gifts” in Greek because each of the gods and goddess on Mount Olympus gave Pandora gifts that granted her certain qualities that were detrimental to her male counterparts, such as “a deceitful nature.”

The “Allegory of the Cave” by Plato represents the differences in the way we perceive reality and what we believe is real. In his story, Plato starts by saying that in a cave, there are prisoners chained down and are forced to look at a wall. The prisoners are unable to turn their heads to see what is going on behind them and are completely bound to the floor. Behind the prisoners, puppeteers hide and cast shadows on the wall in line with the prisoners’ sight, thus giving the prisoners their only sense of reality. What happens in the passage is not told from the prisoners’ point of view but is actually a conversation held between Socrates and Glaucon (Plato’s brother).

She made the earth’s soil infertile and crops shrivel up and die. She demanded that Zeus forced