![]() The myth of Pandora’s box – or Pandora’s jar – is very much the ‘Fall of Man’ story for the ancient Greeks, the pagan equivalent of the story of Adam and Eve’s expulsion from the Garden of Eden in the Book of Genesis. Despite the similar meanings of the two words, they are, after all, not precise synonyms – so it may be that ‘expectation’ rather than ‘hope’ was the last thing left in the jar (rather than box). ![]() ![]() But one way to resolve this apparent inconsistency is to say that the jar represents humankind’s control over things, and whilst they cannot control the ills of the world once they have been let out into the world, they can keep hope alive inside – whereas to let that out too would be to see it dissipated and dissolved into the air.īut was ‘hope’ really the last thing left in Pandora’s box (sorry, jar)? The word Hesiod uses is Elpis (Ἔλπις), which can mean ‘hope’ but is often also translated as meaning ‘expectation’.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |