Aubrey Swihart
Toni Roth
English 9-8
17 April 2023
Pandora - Zeus’ Display of Revenge Towards Men
Why do bad things happen to us? What causes us to have to endure the pain and suffering we’ve been facing from the beginning? Almost every culture has its own attempt at an explanation for this question. For the Greeks, the answer is in the story of Pandora. She was created by the gods and was Zeus’ chosen tool to carry out his punishment on men. She is such an important figure in Greek mythology because she was the mother of all humanity but also responsible for releasing all of their tribulations onto them.
Pandora was the first mortal woman that the gods formed from clay. She was clothed with beauty and ambition (“Atsma” online) and was created
…show more content…
(“Simon” online) As a wedding gift, Pandora received a box but was ordered not to open it. The gods knew Pandora's cunning and curious personality when they gave this temptation disguised as a peace offering. (“Atsma” online) Understanding the Significance of Pandora’s Box explains that when she was made Aphrodite poured grace over her and put desire and care on top of her to “weaken her limbs”. (“Gill” online) The woman’s curiosity became unbearable. The uncontrollable desire was too much for her. Filled with optimism to see what was inside, she opened the box. How could she have known how iconic this box would become for the disappointment that was on the inside? The world was flooded with darkness (“Atsma” online) when out of the box came: greed, envy, pain, illness, and more. (“Simon” online) The only thing that remained in the jar was hope, which was released by Eemetheus and Pandora to comfort mankind (“Atsma” online) Now, according to Gill, N.S. , Pandora’s box usually refers to a source of endless complications or trouble arising from a single, simple miscalculation. Other sources sum it up as a thing that is better left untouched, for fear of what might come from it (“Simon”