Jakob enrolls in the Benjamenta Institute (directed by Johannes and Lisa Benjamenta, brother and sister) to learn how to serve. He learns ludicrous movements, drawing circles, and servility with seven other males under Lisa's tutelage. He expresses his need for a more comfortable room. There are no other pupils in the room, and none of them are leaving for work. Johannes is dissatisfied, tyrannical, and uninterested in the school's operations. Lisa is stunning, at first restrained, then teetering on the brink of a nervous collapse. There's an odor of incest in the air. Lisa attracts Jakob, and he, in turn, attracts her. She falls into a coma as winter approaches. Things continue to deteriorate; Johannes observes that this has all occurred since Jakob's arrival. Is there a correlation between the two?