The kitchen in “The Stolen Party” is important right from the very first line. “As soon as she arrived she went straight to the kitchen to see if the monkey was there.” (p. 1) Even before the story truly begins the author puts Rosaura in the kitchen. This is a clue to the reader that this place is important in the story. The kitchen is important because it links Rosaura to her role as servant, and because the monkey in the kitchen tricks Rosaura into thinking she’s in the kitchen because she wants to be. The kitchen is where all the cooking and preparation work happen during a party. Rosaura goes straight to the kitchen when she gets to Luciana’s house, and this sets her up to be the “helper.” Although she thinks she is asked to help because Senora Ines trusts and likes her (see Chapter 2: Rosaura and Senora Ines), it’s clear that she is being used as a servant, and no other children are being used that way. This is symbolized by the fact that no other children are allowed in the kitchen: it is the author’s way of letting the reader know that Rosaura is the only servant. The saddest thing about “The Stolen Party” is that Rosaura can’t see what is really going on. The kitchen scene shows us how this can happen easily to a child. Children are easily entertained: there is a monkey in the kitchen, and Rosaura is so excited by this that she is tricked into thinking she’s there just because she wants to be. Luciana set up Rosaura to only see the kitchen as a place with a monkey, not as a place where she is being given chores. It’s not clear if Luciana intended to do this, but it doesn’t matter if she did or didn’t—the result is the same. Although there are other important places in the story, like the magician’s set, the kitchen plays a huge part in setting up the most important problem for Rosaura. By setting up the kitchen as a place that only Rosaura can go, Liliana Heker shows the reader that only Rosaura is treated as a servant, but also makes it understandable that Rosaura would feel special. This difference in perspective is at the heart of the story.