UPPER LEVEL

Worksheet Answer Key

The Mistress of Spices

CHITRA BANERJEE DIVAKARUNI

1 a Student’s own answer. Possible details: She is Indian/probably a Hindu/between 40 and 50 years old.
b Mistress means here ii) a woman who is in control of a situation

2 Student’s own answer. Possible details:

a Food, clothes, language, religion, family relationships, climate, level of technological development, etc.
are all different.
b Living alongside people from many different races and cultures. Confronting racism and discrimination.
Children and young people imitating their American peers in ways their parents do not like or
understand. Feeling a loss of identity and culture. Facing a conflict between traditional and modern
lifestyles.

3 a For example, til or sesame seeds are used in bread; kesar or saffron is used with rice, which turns it into
a yellow colour.
b See the table below:

Number English Name Indian Name Magical Powers Food

2 ginger adrak gives courage and strength used in drinks and cakes

3 asafetida hing prevents people from used to flavour stews and

falling in love and makes soups
them strong in battle

4 lotus root kanwal the spice of love cooked in sugared water to

make sweets and desserts

5 black peppercorn kalo marich makes people tell all their used in various hot dishes
secrets

6 turmeric haldi the spice of love and luck used to colour food yellow e.g.
rice

7 black cumin kalo jire gives protection against evil not commonly used in cooking

8 red chillies lanka fight evil or cause destruction used in various hot dishes

See page 2 for Question 4

Macmillan Guided Readers  •  Moderns T HE MIS T R E S S O F SP ICES   1

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UPPER LEVEL Worksheet Answer Key
4

Character Spices Reasons Results

Lalita Turmeric (p21) for love and luck and to take away She finds support for battered wives in
old age a magazine Tilo gave her and she gains
in confidence. (p68)

Fennel (p34) to strengthen her mind

Haroun and Black cumin to protect Haroun from evil He is attacked, but survives to fall in
Hameeda (p22) love with Hameeda.

Red chillies to cleanse the evil from the city

(p62)

Lotus root for their wedding night so their love

(p73) will always be passionate

Jagjit Cinnamon so one day he will say “no” and the He joins a gang of older boys who
(p23) kids who bully him will leave him protect him and teach him how to
alone fight. (p38–9)

Indian Madder to make him calm and take away his

(p39) anger

Raven Asafetida so he will not fall in love with her

(p27) (though she does not give it to him)

Lotus root so he will fall in love with her He falls in love with her.
(p28) (though she does not give it to him)

Peppercorn it makes him tell all his secrets He tells her secrets about how he got
(p45) his name and his recurring dreams.

Tilo Ginger (p17) the Old One gives it to her to give

her courage before entering
Shampati’s Fire and going to America

Ginger (p40) she takes it to give herself courage

before going out of the store for the
first time to visit Geeta.

Makaradwaj, to make herself young again for

The King of Raven
Spices (p66)

Sesame (p76) to protect her on her journey

Turmeric (p76) to prepare her for her journey

Red chilli (p76) to call up Shampati’s Fire so that it Nothing happens. She is left alone in
will take her back to the island America as a punishment. (p77)

Macmillan Guided Readers  •  Moderns T HE MIS T R E S S O F SP ICES   2

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UPPER LEVEL Worksheet Answer Key

The Almond and to sweeten their words and

Grandfather saffron (p32) thoughts and to help them
and his family remember love, not anger

Thorn herb to give him the golden tongue so He gets a very bad stomach and
mixed with that whatever he says will make convinces Ramu to visit Tilo.
honey (p52) people believe and obey him.

5 Student’s own answer.

6 Student’s own answer.

7 See the table below for possible answers.

Number a) Rule b) Reason

1 She must not look in a mirror. (p71) It is important not to be vain because a
Mistress must not want anything for herself.
She is there only to help others.

2 She must not leave her store and go out in the Only the store and the spices are important
world. (p22) (p18). A Mistress is not of this world, but the
spiritual world. If she becomes involved in the
physical world she loses her powers.

3 She must only help her own people and only Perhaps a form of positive discrimination. Also
them. Others must go somewhere else for there is a risk that foreigners will not respect
help. (p24) the rules of her culture, which in this case
could be dangerous.

4 She must have no desires for herself. (p26) She will not see things clearly any more. She
will become confused and the spices will no
longer obey her. (p27)

5 She must love everyone equally. (p33) She must not have any desires for herself. See
4 above.

6 She must not use the powers of the spices to See 4 above. Also, this prevents corruption.
help herself. (p54)

7 If a Mistress is called back and she refuses to The good work a Mistress does can be turned
come, she will be called back anyway. And into evil if she does not respect the real
then all those around her – all those she purpose and source of her powers.
loves – will be destroyed by Shampati’s
Fire. (p64)

8 Student’s own answer. Students might suggest setting up a community centre with activities and support
services for ethnic minority groups. The centre could run various projects such as a karate club, a centre
for battered wives, or support services for families and young people.

Macmillan Guided Readers  •  Moderns T HE MIS T R E S S O F SP ICES   3

This page has been downloaded from www.onestopenglish.com. It is photocopiable, but all copies must be complete pages.
© Macmillan Publishers Limited 2003. Published by Macmillan Heinemann ELT Heinemann is a registered trademark of Reed Educational and Professional Publishing Limited