A very different view of Pandora

Having more significance than their obvious purpose provides, handbags have a long history and are connected both to having and giving. They are also connected to myth, image and creation. When choosing your handbag you may very well be choosing a brand, a collection, a color and a convenience. And you are choosing your way of living in and giving to the world. How is this so?

There is a rather fascinating take on handbags as having a distinct relationship to the mythical connection of women and boxes—containers, wombs, bags, resources, all the things necessary for life. Have you ever thought of your bag as your own Pandora’s box? I must admit, I have never thought of it as that, perhaps because of the naturally negative connotations that I would prefer not to associate. BUT I have imagined my bags as more like the magic bag of Felix the Cat (shows my era) or Mary Poppins. When I drop my bag and the pens, lipsticks, cell phone and more spill out...then it seems more like Pandora's box.

For most women, being associated with Pandora is not a thought we relish. How many times have we been accused of being the source of all evils in the world. Not only does Hesiod’s epic poem ‘Theogony’ say that, but modern uses of religion continue to push this point as if reiterating partial truths would fix the world’s problems. Sure women probably have something to do with the problems of the world, but are we that powerful, that we caused it all?

But onto a more hopeful and helful train of thought!

There are some key elements of Pandora’s story that continue to be disregarded. Or perhaps simply not known and so not re-told. Let's look beyond the Hesiodic myths that justified the shift from matriarchy to patriarchy in Greek culture around his time. Let's recall her original character.

Some consider Pandora the original female deity who was the Earth, giver of all gifts. She embodied the fertility of the earth and its capacity to bear grain and fruits for the benefit of humankind. She was the “all giver.” It was later that she devolved from myth into fable, from ‘all giver’ into ‘all gifted,’ from benevolent into self-centered, ignorant.

Beyond those reflections on mythology, another part of the Pandora story that is rather fascinating relates to what Pandora kept in the box. There was something she managed to “keep in” even as the evils of the world escaped from the box Zeus had given Pandora to carry to men. Zeus, angry that Prometheus had given the gift of fire to man, contrived his own punishing gift for men.

Somewhere in my thinking, a link emerged between handbags, identity and mythical women. Or perhaps more specifically, Pandora. Perhaps it was the years of caring for children and business when my handbag was my mobile “fix it all” or “carry all.” The plethora of goodies contained within, if it happened to tip over, spilled out like I imagined the famed evils from Pandora’s box. Challenging anyone to get them back where they were.

Just a few weeks ago I revisited this thought and Wikipedia. Every time I looked at a handbag Pandora’s box would come to mind. So I took a few minutes to brush up on some ancient mythology. From that a number of thoughts and some burning questions emerged. But we will start kindly. With the thoughts and tid bits I found out (and there is plenty more on Wikipedia and many other web and encyclopedia sources.)

Of course it was not surprising to find that perhaps what Pandora had was not really a box. Perhaps more like jar. But needless to say, it was a container for valuable items which, in days of yore, included oils and grains.

But there are far more interesting points about Pandora’s story. What is most interesting is all that is NOT said about Pandora. Until recently, all I knew about Pandora was the usual stuff: that she was the one who let all the evils into the world. (I always knew women were powerful…so powerful men were powerless to stop women from such dastardly deeds!)

But why were some of the most important elements of her character and life so easily forgotten like: She was the giver of all. She didn't just "have it all" sha gave it all. This is no small distinction. And there is more. Let me touch on a few seemingly disparate points and then quickly tie them together.

Handbags, especial during the children phase of life, reminded me of Pandora’s box. Or at least what I knew of Pandora’s box. A container with everything in it that at times, seemed more like necessary evils than desirables.

Our handbags hold and carry valuable things. Today, they carry some of our most esential and valuable items, including our financial and legal “identities.” We want, and need, to keep these close and protected. But who we are is not just a thing of the past. It is intimately connected with who we are becoming. Our identity is linked with our hopes and aspirations. Our handbags are therefore our carriers of these.

To give more depth, let’s explore a little mythology for a moment. Bags are made of the same stuff as the boxes and jars of mythology. Yes, I am sure that you could sense where this was headed. To the story of Pandora’s box. But don’t stop here. There is one part of that story that is usually left untold. But it may well be one of the more important parts.

We all know that Pandora opened the box. What is less known is that after she opened it, she was quick enough to close it again before everything got out. Interestingly it was all the evils of the world that escaped leaving just one thing behind, and Pandora managed to keep that within her reach in the box. (Personally, I can’t help but notice that the evils didn’t originate with Pandora, the first woman. Where did Zeus get them? How did he “box” them up? While these questions may be a digression, it is good to know that Pandora didn’t create all those evils. Nor did she carry them all around with her. Instead, Pandora managed to keep one thing in the box and of the most potent forces in the world—hope.

So it is not too much of a leap to think of your handbag as the way you decide to carry around one of the most potent of human capacities, the capacity for hope. Sometime you are playful. Sometimes glamorous. Sometimes matter-of-fact and businesslike. Other times, well, outright rebellious. But it is not surprising that you pay particular attention to how you carry around your precious items, your connection to the future.

Your choice of bag is also linked to how you envision yourself and your future. And since life does not stand still, this evolves and changes. Grows and develops. Your envisioning, your ideas, your image of yourself is the “stuff” of your fashion quest. So, when you are ready for something new, magazines and/or a search on the internet are a great place to start. Searching for ideas can be fun so long as it doesn’t take forever!

Let's find ways to make life full and beautiful. That is good to do.

Yours in life, Karen

P.S. Please send your thoughts and comments: support@shopalponte.com

Articles

Handbags and Pandora's Box

Gratitude is the forgotten factor happiness research.

In search of the perfect bag

Italian Luxury Handbags Never Go Out of Style

Podcasts, video & audio files

The Philosophy of Fashion
If you tried to iron out metaphysics of fashion, where would you begin? By nature fashion is ephemeral, transient and frivolous, but is that all? << more >>

Photography, fashion and fashion show production
Fashion is so much about image, art and beauty. All intangibles. See how Jodi Jones puts these together through her work as a fashion photographer and now as a fashion show designer. << more >>

Blogs & sites

Stylish: A Fashion Diary

Style.com bringing the latest runway collections to the eWorld.

The Handbag in History

The Ladies: A weekly newspaper published in London for nine months beginning in 1872, divided its attention between discussions of fashion, the activities of the royal family, women’s suffrage, and domestic economy. A fascinating overview of women, fashion and activism in history.

Home | About | Contact |© 2008 Boutique Al Ponte