Evolving interdependencies between two waves of gentrifiers in the wax and wane of a ‘Utopian Village’: A case study of Cenbu Village, Shanghai

Abstract

Amid the escalating rural gentrification, a diverse array of gentrifiers is precipitating the path from coexistence and cooperation to conflict and eventual displacement. Existing literature has primarily addressed gentrifiers as a homogeneous group and focuses on the displacement of indigenous villagers, while the staged interdependencies and the displacement of gentrifiers have remained largely understudied. Drawing on a longitudinal study of a Shanghai village on a path to rural super‐gentrification, this article investigates the complex interdependencies of two waves of gentrifiers, from commensal relations to exclusion, culminating in the eventual displacement of the first‐wave gentrifiers. The study further analyses the construction and deconstruction of a ‘Utopian Village’ and the role of the gentrifiers' divergent perceptions of rurality in this evolving process. First‐wave gentrifiers tend to value the authenticity of villages, and seek to construct a ‘Utopian Village’ through commensal socio‐economic relations and the maintenance of a sustainable ecosystem, while preserving the authenticity and openness of the landscape. Their efforts, however, attract a second wave of gentrifiers who hold differing views of rurality, and this misalignment results in the over‐consumption and alienation of rurality, characterised by introverted social networks and over‐decorative landscapes. The originally envisaged ‘Utopian Village’ is thus undermined, leading to the exclusion and displacement of the first‐wave gentrifiers. This research contributes to a deeper understanding of the evolving dynamics of rural gentrification, the super‐gentrification trend, the complex interdependencies of the different types of gentrifiers and the effects on the communities in question.