Theses and Dissertations Collection

Blair is a working-class novel set during the rapid gentrification of Blair Boulevard and the surrounding area of Eugene, Oregon—called the Whitaker District—that happened over the course of several years in the early-2010s. During this time, the Whitaker became a hub of high-end dining and the culinary heart of Eugene; however, by telling this story exclusively from the point of view of the bartenders and cooks that work on Blair, this history becomes complicated. Though the characters of this novel are deeply alienated (from their own bodies, which suffer constant injury, and from the street itself, which they can no longer afford to live on), their labor is capable of radically changing the street. In this way, the novel troubles the boundaries of ownership by looking at gentrification as a byproduct of exploited labor, asking who, if anyone, truly owns Blair? And even more importantly, what is the human cost of providing a hospitality you are no longer able to afford yourself?