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……よくもこのような若輩の身でそのようなことが堂々と言えるものだ…。
My guess would be that 身, in this case, means "one's position" or something like this, but how does that really work? For instance, if I were to say アメリカ人の身で in a context where an American wouldn't be appropriate to talk about something, would that work as "Even though he's American..." or "Being American.." (in a negative way)? It reminds me of 身の程知らず.
Additionally, I'd like to know what もの expresses here. Is it something to express a feeling of surprise?
Yes this 身 means one's position or social status. アメリカ人の身で means "as an American", but it's more emphatic than アメリカ人として.
This phrase on its own does not have a negative meaning, but it's often used with negative expressions, and in such cases you may want to translate it as "although he's American", "despite being American", or such. Here are some non-negative examples:
- 私はまだ学生の身です。
I'm still a student. (maybe sounds more humble than 私はまだ学生です)- これからは自由の身で暮らしたい。
From now on I want to be my own master.
ものだ has several meanings, and this ものだ expresses the speaker's surprise; "How can you ～!" or "How dare you ～!". It's often used with よくも. Examples.
