In order to punish Man, Zeus and the Olympians created Woman. A beautiful creature, Pandora was offered as a gift and readily accepted by Man. As a “wedding present,” Zeus presented them with a beautifully wrought box. When Pandora opened the box, all suffering and despair was unleashed upon mankind. Zeus had his revenge.
Prometheus sought fire for human betterment -- to make tools and warm hearts -- but inadvertently brought about destruction. Similarly, Mary Shelley's arrogant scientist, Victor Frankenstein, claims "benevolent intentions, and thirst[s] for the moment when I should put them in practice." Frankenstein endures not only because of its infamous horrors but for the richness of the ideas it asks us to confront--human accountability, social alienation, and the nature of life itself.