Institute Benjamenta, or This Dream People Call Human Life

At the Institute Benjamenta, Jakob finds himself amidst an unusual environment where he learns to become a servant under the strict tutelage of Lisa Benjamenta. The institute is run by her brother Johannes and sister Lisa, with the latter imparting peculiar lessons in servitude involving bizarre movements, drawing circles, and subservience. As Jakob navigates this enigmatic world along with seven other students who seemingly remain confined within its walls, he requests for a better room but is met with an eerie silence as no new students arrive and none leave for employment.Johannes, the stern and imperious brother, maintains distance from the school's operations while Lisa, exquisite yet tightly controlled at first, begins to show signs of breakdown as winter arrives. As Jakob becomes increasingly drawn towards Lisa - a connection that might hint at underlying feelings of their own - her mental state deteriorates further into catatonia, leaving him questioning if his presence has had any unforeseen consequences.This surreal narrative delves into the realms of human connection, power dynamics, and the strange intersection between servitude and desire, all set against the backdrop of a seemingly closed world where the line between cause and effect is blurred, leaving Jakob to grapple with a complex web of relationships that defy conventional understanding.