Elpis is everything that remains in the jar , when Pandora closed it again , so does the jar give elpis to mankind , or does it keep elpis away from it ? The jar certainly serves as a prison for the evils that Pandora released -- they only affect mankind once outside the jar . Some have argued that logic dictates , therefore , that the jar acts as a prison for Elpis as well , withholding it from men .