Talk:Pandora's box

What is this myth about? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 58.104.134.101 (talk) 07:23, 1 May 2008

I think it's about a thought that you should always hope instead of be down. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 78.145.195.210 ([talk]]) 18:08, 20 July 2008 (UTC) Reply

And I think it's about the libido the female can suppress for many year, maybe even her entire life. But once opened, the libido will bring many evil. If there is no partner to satisfy her, she will very well die, or, live with hope. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 217.25.126.128 (talk) 21:54, 26 July 2008 (UTC) Reply

[http//:www.rotten.com gruesome] — Preceding unsigned comment added by 174.48.47.247 (talk) 22:44, 13 August 2009

To the ancient greeks hope was the greatest evil in the box. The greeks believed in fate. Hope was a goad and a delusion that things might be better, that onecould escape their fate. It always turned to dust. Seeing hope as a good might be a nice christianized interpretation, but it has nothing to do with pandora's story. 75.191.157.40 (talk) 05:40, 28 July 2008 (UTC) Reply

Shouldn't this be mentioned in the article? To the ancient Greeks, hope was the worst curse of all on mankind. It was left in the box/jar because while all the other evils attack us from the outside, hope destroys us from within. The modern interpretation, where in hope lies our salvation, is very wrong. Chernyshevsky (talk) 15:01, 11 October 2009 (UTC) Reply

I think its about the soul of a cursed manInsert non-formatted text here that you should always hope instead of be down. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 196.209.129.30 (talk) 12:53, 5 November 2009

This story makes no sense. All the other things escaped and now we have those in our world. OK, got that. But hope did not escape, so human beings should never have the feeling of hope, right? Wrong, apparently. Total BS mythological story. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 63.88.64.5 (talk) 18:56, 18 June 2010 (UTC) Reply

I was reading THE Myths and Legends OF ANCIENT GREECE AND ROME by E. M. BERENS and he said that instead of curses the jar contained the blessings reserved by the gods for mankind. Also that the jar was in the possesion of Epimetheus, instead of being given to pandora by the gods. Which makes more sense to me than the popular version of the story, where the gods create pandora then give her the box, then send her to Epimetheus...It just seems like a really roundabout way to punish mankind.138.162.0.44 (talk) 16:34, 22 June 2010 (UTC) Reply

It's a bit much to have an article where the pop culture "references" take up more room than the actual explanation of the subject matter itself. Do we even need to mention that it's used again? Alastairward (talk) 12:51, 9 September 2008 (UTC) Reply

hope escaped the box, but the "creature" left inside was the ability to predict death, thats what this page is missing —Preceding unsigned comment added by 65.95.154.53 (talk) 02:35, 5 January 2009 (UTC) Reply

The "In Popular Culture" section seems almost worthless. The total number of books, movies and video games to have a reference to Pandora or Pandora's box must be enormous. 63.197.247.13 (talk) 23:07, 15 June 2010 (UTC) Reply

I have removed it and placed the entries here. If one or two are interesting, they might be reintroduced again. However it does not make sense in an article about "Jesus" to ference all movies or video games that contain the word "Jesus" or in an article about "The Wheel" to have all vehicles mentioned that use th wheel nowadays ... We might think of creating an extra page "popular culture mentioning pandora's box" or so, which I however do not consider relevant for wikipedia.

• In the video game God of War and God of War 3 , Pandora's Box is featured heavily as one of the main story points. In God of War, the box is said to contain all of the evils that were left over from the great war between the Olympians and the Titans. The gods feared the power that was in the box, so they commissioned a temple to be built and chained to the back of Cronus, as punishment by Zeus.

• In God of War 3 , Kratos is hunting down the Olympians along with the Titans, who want revenge on the gods for their imprisonment in Tartarus. After falling back into the underworld, Kratos is sent to find the Flame of Olympus. Kratos eventually learns that Pandora's Box still exists. Protected by the Flame of Olympus, its contents are said to still be able to slay a god. Learning later that Pandora herself is the key and that only she can pacify the Flame of Olympus as she was born not by the gods, but by the Flame itself. After finding Pandora, Kratos returns to the box, there she sacrifices herself to dissolve the Flames. After opening the box Kratos find the box is now empty. Later Athena reveals that prior to the evils being locked in the box she placed a power inside to defeat the evils if they were to be released. The only power strong enough to defeat the evil is Hope.^{[citation needed ]}

• In the popular reality television show, Big Brother, Pandora's Box has been used to temp Houseguests saying it could unleash something good or something bad upon the opener of the box, their fellow players, or the house in general.

• In the 2008 videogame Legendary Pandora's box is opened, causing the mythical creatures contained in it to come out and destroy New York City.

• In the 1993 video game Zombies Ate My Neighbors , Pandora's Box is one of the items that the player can collect. When used, the golden chest opens and several powerful energy blasts fly around the screen like smart-bombs, targeting every visible enemy and destroying most, if not all, of them.

• In the final Percy Jackson novel, Pandora's Box is given to the main protagonist. He was told that as a sign that he surrendered, he should let Hope out of the box. It appears as yet another version wherein all good things abandoned humans (represented by the box), except for Hope, who stayed.

• In the eighteenth episode of the seventh season of the television drama Charmed, the sisters must rescue Pandora's Box from a demon who intends to unleash it's contents, said to be illnesses, diseases, sorrows and toils held within, and return the box to it's protector named hope.

• In the 2005 film The 40-Year-Old Virgin , David brings Andy a big box of pornography and calls it "Pandora's Box of Love."

• In the 2003 film Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life , Pandora's box is an artifact that releases a deadly plague when it is opened. The box is found in the Cradle of Life, a secret hiding place for the box near Kilimanjaro in Africa.

• Pandora's Box is referenced in a 1995 episode of the television series Xena: Warrior Princess entitled "Cradle of Hope".

• Professor Layton and Pandora's Box [Diabolical Box] USA - In the second game of the Professor Layton series Luke and Layton set out on finding Pandora's Box and finding out the curse behind it. Though in the end the Professor finds that the Box was laced with gas which when opened gives hallucinogenic side effects when exposed to.

• In the 5th series of the science-fiction television series Doctor Who , a large part of the main story arc is the "opening of the Pandorica," revealed in the penultimate episode of the series, The Pandorica Opens , to be a prison to contain the Doctor. The Doctor's companion throughout the series, Amy Pond, mentions that a book about the legend of Pandora's Box was her favourite book as a child: it later emerges that the Pandorica's surroundings (a Roman legion in the vicinity of Stonehenge) was an engineered scenario constructed from Amy's memories, ostensibly to draw the Doctor into the trap, and make his imprisonment in the Pandorica possible.

• In the Disney animated movie Hercules , Pandora's Box is mentioned by the antagonist Hades.

• A contestant from the second season of the reality television show RuPaul's Drag Race, Pandora Boxx placed 5th and won the title of Miss Congeniality. She also went on to become a professor on the Drag Race spin-off, RuPaul's Drag U —Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.219.211.3 (talk • contribs) }

Pandora Music is a good cultural allusion to panodra myth because it depicts it very well. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Marcy.06 (talk • contribs) 19:42, 3 January 2018 (UTC) Reply

• In an episode of Futurama, the Professor gives Leela a box and tells her not to open it, but she does.

I wonder, Which version of the Pandora's Box from so many films and games that could be considered as "true" or "the real one"? --Shadowrend45, 18:53, October 25 2012 (UTC)

The way I heard this she lets all of th evils out, one being Foreshadowing. with Foreshadowing we are doomed, so hope coming out saves us. so the way this is, says we are doomed. 24.223.154.154 (talk) 00:18, 22 September 2008 (UTC) Reply

As I understand it, the greek word elpis (the remaining 'evil' in the box) means 'expectation' and can mean expectation of good or evil, I've always interpreted it as expectation of evil since the box contains evils, thus the remaining evil would be hopelessness, or the foreknowledge of all the evil that will befall mankind. On an unrelated note, the similarities between the pandora myth and the fall of man are curious enough to compel further inquiry.24.177.123.2 (talk) 01:22, 9 December 2009 (UTC) Reply

no, no, no. She saved hope. From my understanding, if she hadn't closed the box, hope would have disappeared. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.53.160.142 (talk) 03:54, 14 June 2010 (UTC) Reply

The source cited for hope being evil doesn't even say that. When Pandora opened the box, those evils were set onto the world. if she didn't let hope out, we wouldn't have hope; it'd be trapped in a box. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.79.114.209 (talk) 07:38, 20 June 2010 (UTC) Reply

I've often wondered if perhaps what was really meant was "despair" but it somehow got mistranslated into "hope". The myth makes sense if it was despair that wasn't released into the world. Is there any scholarship that supports this idea? SnappingTurtle (talk) 03:10, 19 October 2011 (UTC) Reply

There is actually a subtle irony here. The story is often viewed as a kitchy 'Well at least something good came out' tale. Instead, hope can be viewed as malevolent, acting as more of a catalyst that enhances other evils, rather than the source of a specific strife. Hope prevents someone from accepting the permanent nature of a persistent 'evil', which would otherwise diminish it's affect; thus hope serves to prolong and intensify suffering rather than 'solve' it. Anyone who's ever tried to abandon hope and accept a defeat knows that hope has a way of coming back and sticking around-much like the object of the story. Ghos two 01:36, 10 May 2013 (UTC) Reply

Yes, the previous account is the one that I always read. I can't find a source for it now, I will have a look when I get a chance, but what I read is that hope was the greatest of all the evils, since it "prolongs the suffering of men". JackStonePGD (talk) 04:56, 8 October 2015 (UTC) Reply

What were the evils that were in the box? We have to do a project on Pandoras box for homework and i need at least 8 Evils. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 121.98.206.7 (talk) 02:34, 15 March 2009 (UTC) Reply

shouldnt you do it by ur self??????? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.94.30.43 (talk) 05:31, 24 July 2009

well they kinda were they were using the internet to find the 8 evils needed for the project i think it was pain, anger, greed, lust, envy, pride, sloth and and illness —Preceding unsigned comment added by 121.73.5.5 (talk) 06:28, 17 March 2011 (UTC) Reply

"There is no reason to think Pandora acted out of malice in opening the jar, for she was exercising her curiosity, and when she saw what was let out of it, she quickly closed it."

Does anybody think she was acting out of malice? When we reference Pandora's box in conversation it is usually when talking about an incident that turned bad unexpectedly and cannot be undone, not something harmful done on purpose.68.9.130.10 (talk) 16:33, 6 June 2009 (UTC) Reply

The Greek gods were often if not completely evil utter dickheads. Zeus and the other gods were angry after Prometheus stole fire from them so they made sure the container full of evils ended up in the hands of someone who would not be able to resist opening it. It was not malice from Pandora - any more than putting a brightly coloured box in the hands of a toddler and telling them not to open it and then blaming them when they did.

The malice was very much in the actions of the gods but in Greek myth evil actions often invited fate to reply in kind. Zeus got to release all the evils on humanity and also to claim they did it to themselves making him safe from retribution. 192.193.116.137 (talk) 15:32, 20 June 2024 (UTC) Reply

Is it possible for more information to be added? Last time I checked, there was more information than this. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.154.31.116 (talk) 03:50, 30 September 2009

Pandoras Box is talking about a container that was originally describes as a jar that belonged to the first woman, Pandora. Supposedly When she opened it, she released all the evils into the world leaving only hope inside. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-hellenic-studies/article/abs/pandoras-box/3A8FA44FCC3806F6B5192A94F8E0485D — Preceding unsigned comment added by Gatumadre25 (talk • contribs) 06:41, 9 December 2025 (UTC) Reply

Some people say they never found pandora's box (experts). But most people say they have found pandora's box and have it and that they are now selling.But I believe that they themselves are just faking th box so the can have money for themselves. I love reading about greek mytholgy.So when I heard that people are claiming pandora's box I was kinda upset. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.99.150.187 (talk) 18:32, 23 December 2009 (UTC) Reply

Get God of War III: Ultimate Edition and you'll get Pandora's box! But seriously, it's a myth. Anybody saying they're selling it is a liar.--76.247.157.153 (talk) 23:49, 22 February 2010 (UTC) Reply

I have an idea where the box is located. It is a modern day box, located at the bottom of the gulf of Mexico. When you punch a hole in the bottom of the ocean, with no conceivable way of closing it, then you have opened up Pandora's Box, and assuredly, the only thing remaining is hope, and when hope escapes, if it ever chooses to, then disaster may be averted...contemplation results... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 96.243.167.126 (talk) 12:35, 13 June 2010 (UTC) Reply

Does anyone know of similar myths from non-Greek lore? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 193.188.105.25 (talk) 20:30, 23 December 2009 (UTC) Reply

One example is Adam & Eve, where Eve's curiosity leads her to taste the fruit and then life goes downhill from there. I'd be interested in knowing the dates of the earliest references to these stories. 66.69.251.117 (talk) 18:47, 6 August 2010 (UTC) Reply

Specific dates are hard to establish since most Greek myths are based on oral traditions, but essentially all ancient Greek myths predate those in the bible, and in many cases are thought to be in inspiration for the stories in the bible. This is a conspicuous example. By the time the bible was written, the classical Greek period had passed. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 174.91.216.77 (talk) 13:25, 23 December 2010 (UTC) Reply

Only the new testament, dude. Everything else was written long before, with the last books being written during. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2601:448:C300:6E10:4883:CAB0:1E95:377 (talk) 06:54, 16 June 2021 (UTC) Reply

Why is the article entitled "Pandora's Box" when it say explicitly that is was not a box but a jar? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.45.19.42 (talk) 21:17, 27 January 2011 (UTC) Reply

It is a misnomer, a term which has become widely known and referenced in the English-speaking world. Which is in line with WP:AT. ќמшמφטтгמ ^torque 09:04, 5 April 2011 (UTC) Reply

Was Pandora's Jar also mistranslated in other languages besides English? It doesnt say so in the article. ќמшמφטтгמ ^torque 09:12, 5 April 2011 (UTC) Reply

At the end of the article it says to see also the article for "Can of worms", however the link takes you to a disambiguation page with 4 entries, none of which explain the meaning of the phrase.69.150.41.48 (talk) 15:38, 29 June 2011 (UTC) Reply

Although there is a lot of fact and myth that info us of Pandora's Box, the truth is simple: We have no idea to be exact where this box could be. Yes, it contains the evils of the world, but those evils are already out and roaming free as of today. Mostly, if hope never did get out of the box, then why do we know of it?

Overall view of this page, we should, if possible, add a statement that sums up what exactly the meaning of the story behind Pandora and her box means. Good info, without a doubt, but the end of it should read: "Always keep hope alive even when it is locked away." At this point, day, and age: Pandora's Box may as well be: "Chaos is locked up and can never it open, for it means the end of all things." --Zhang Liao (talk) 14:09, 26 August 2011 (UTC) Reply

No because the hope left in the pithos means that the human race did not give up hope as referance to percy jackson as Prometheus gave him the pitos and said if you let go of hope you will survive — Preceding unsigned comment added by Tilly bea (talk • contribs) 03:38, 28 December 2011 (UTC) Reply

Pandora was given a wedding gift of a beautiful jar, with instructions to not open it under any circumstance. Impelled by her curiosity (given to her by the gods), Pandora opened it and all evil contained therein escaped and spread over the earth. She hastened to close the container, but the whole contents had escaped; Apate and all the others, except for one thing that lay at the bottom – the Spirit of Hope, named Elpis.[7]

'Works and days' by Hesiod which it refers to says neither where Pandora got that jar (it might already belong to Prometheus or his brother) nor about any instructions 'not to open it', there should be some additional source.

— Preceding unsigned comment added by 217.118.64.56 (talk • contribs) 14:21, 14 November 2014‎

I've rewritten the above to confrom to Hesiod. Paul August ☎ 15:29, 2 March 2015 (UTC) Reply

title is everything except: surely some scholar at some point in history has stated noticing such an obvious parallel, no? — Preceding unsigned comment added by Sinsearach (talk • contribs) 18:15, 18 April 2017 (UTC) Reply

The remark immediately above (and others in the past) came as a result of the imbalance in the article, which carried a lot of inessential detail about Pandora. There was also unnecessary repetition, both of information and of references, including no less than three to Works and Days. In addition, not sufficient attention was given to the idiom derived from the story. The revised version tries to remedy that situation and incorporates some relevant information from the long footnotes at the end. Sweetpool50 (talk) 20:00, 16 January 2018 (UTC) Reply

As the title suggests, could the name Pandora mean " Pan 's gift" instead of "All-gifting" ? ConfusedEnoch (talk) 13:42, 4 August 2020 (UTC) Reply

If epsis means either anticipation of good or anticipation of evil, the myth makes more sense to me (in terms of epsis still being trapped in the jar) if it's more about 'dread' being trapped inside, and is celebrating our ignorance of the evils everywhere. Like, we can wander about all day without being constantly conscious of looming evil but would be paralysed if we were constantly cognisant of all potential bad stuff around. Similarly, this interpretation holds up on the more positive interpretation of epsis as 'hope' as a bit of an evil for the ancient Greeks and your fate is your fate so don't ruminate on daydreams. It also fits better with the 'we do have hope so how is it trapped inside vs not' and shouldn't we release it if it is interpretation issue. Nb. I can find nothing backing this up. 203.206.22.49 (talk) 01:47, 28 April 2022 (UTC) Reply

The olmeg were a tribe in South America alongside the Maya and Aztec. They disappeared some time ago. About 100 years ago or so, legend has it the Archeologists dug up what looks to me like a Prison (made of Basalt walls) The could have held what legend may describe as the "Titans" of greek mythology. This to me seems like a pandora's box and the saying "curiosity killed the cat" applies I guess. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.180.112.114 (talk) 10:50, 26 October 2024 (UTC) Reply

This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation –supported course assignment, between 16 January 2024 and 10 May 2024. Further details are available on the course page . Student editor(s): Wgronwald6 (article contribs ).

— Assignment last updated by Wgronwald6 (talk) 22:17, 18 April 2024 (UTC) Reply

Is hades in pandoras box 2A02:C7E:6008:5400:F0CD:BB61:6C66:160 (talk) 17:26, 5 May 2024 (UTC) Reply

The redirect Pandora's+jar has been listed at redirects for discussion to determine whether its use and function meets the redirect guidelines. Readers of this page are welcome to comment on this redirect at Wikipedia:Redirects for discussion/Log/2025 March 31 §Pandora's+jar until a consensus is reached. Steel1943 (talk) 21:01, 31 March 2025 (UTC) Reply

This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation –supported course assignment, between 18 August 2025 and 12 December 2025. Further details are available on the course page . Student editor(s): FoxgirlAz (article contribs ).

— Assignment last updated by FoxgirlAz (talk) 16:29, 31 August 2025 (UTC) Reply

I think some (many?) of the recent edits by 83d40m (talk ·contribs ) are probably improvements. I will be going through these edits and adding some back as I see fit. I suggest other editors do the same. If anyone objects to any edit feel free to revert and discuss your objection here. As a general rule when wholesale changes are reverted, it is a good idea to break up such into smaller chunks. Paul August ☎ 11:56, 7 June 2026 (UTC) Reply

— Thank you, User:Paul_August. An idiom based on a mistaken translation is the subject of the article, I was hoping to motivate other editors to participate in improving the article in order to make sure that WP was providing the depth needed to explore the inaccuracy of the idiom based on a translation thousands of years after a long history of traditional correct translations. Perhaps writers finding our information might choose the accurate term — isn't education our fundamental objective? The correct idiom, Pandora's Jar seems more rational as the title, with a redirect for the recent adoption of an incorrect translation of the mythical story... eh? Now that is a discussion I'd like to see on the talk page, rather than discussion of reversal of accurate edits. I look forward to your review for corrections. _ _ _ _ 83d40m (talk) 20:12, 7 June 2026 (UTC) Reply