Pandora was the first woman to appear in the Greek mythology, according to Hesiod’s work, Theogony. Zeus was angry with Prometheus for stealing fire from the Olympian. So he sent down Pandora as a punishment to mankind. Now we have a basic idea of what position woman were in the ancient society. It’s a symbol for evil, an archetype for sin. She was told never to let open a box, but her curiosity took the better side and she lifted the lid. All evils sprang out, it was a disaster. But lucky enough, Pandora closed the lid just in time and hope remained inside.
For centuries people thought the story meant “All evils out, but we still have hope.” But this theory just doesn’t have anything to support itself. All evil were out side the box, so what good does it do to humans to have hope locked up in a box? And besides, if hope was such a good thing, then why was it in the box of evil in the first place? Those were questions we couldn’t find answers for. Again, it proved how primitive the Greeks’ minds were. They couldn’t even create a myth that makes sense. Much discrimination was presented in the myth as well. Why Pandora? Why evil? And mostly, why a woman?
This reminds me of Eve, the first woman made by god according to the holy bible. Pandora and Eve had a lot in common. Both woman, both was told not to do something, both did it anyways, both caused trouble; both were blamed for the trouble. Everyone had curiosity, not just females. I really don’t see the connection.
Anyways, despite all the similarities, Eve was taken more seriously than Pandora. She was made out of Man’s ribs (which means they were made from the same material), but as for Pandora, her creation was unexplained. She was a creature that was nothing like men, much distance was set upon them. Eve and Adam both ate the forbidden fruit, but Pandora opened the box by herself. Eve only caused harm for herself, but Pandora harmed the whole mankind. This is an example of the deep-seated misogyny that runs through the Greek Mythology.
The evil box could also be read as representing Pandora’s womb. And all women were responsible for evil in that they are responsible for life itself, by giving birth. At the same time that birth inflicts all the evils of life on the one born, it is also the only hope for continuity available to humans. Now that’s a paradox. Newborns could be evils and hope at the same time, so why can Pandora be guilty when so many people demand her to be?