THE CRITICAL ONTO-PHENOMENOLOGICAL HERMENEUTIC METHOD: TWO (PERHAPS THREE) BODIES DO NOT INHABIT THE SAME SPACE?

Abstract

This article proposes a hermeneutic-ontophenomenological critical approach, situating it as a relational, lived, and meaning-laden dimension. Building on the question “two bodies cannot inhabit the same space,” it seeks to problematize the material, symbolic, and social coexistence of distinct bodies, considering physical, ontological, and political implications. The main objective is to analyze how spatiality constitutes a field of presence, tension, and meaning-making, highlighting interactions among body, memory, time, and signification. The methodology combines phenomenology, hermeneutics, and critical analysis, articulating reflective observation, interpretation, and problematization of spatial practices, in dialogue with authors such as Heidegger, Merleau-Ponty, Lefebvre, Massey, and Santos. The results indicate that space is not merely a physical or geometric container, but emerges as a dynamic network of relations, where presences, absences, conflicts, and projections coexist, allowing multiple simultaneous experiences and symbolic overlaps. It is concluded that inhabiting space goes beyond mere occupation: it involves weaving meanings, negotiating tensions, and recognizing the ontological density of existence, understanding space as a living stage of interactions, memory, and temporality. Thus, geograficity reveals itself as a philosophical practice capable of apprehending the relational and experiential complexity of spatial phenomena.