The Nature of Space
Milton Santos (1926–2001) was Professor of Geography at the University of São Paulo and the author of many books, including
Susanna Hecht is Professor of Urban Planning at the University of California, Los Angeles and Professor of International History at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva.
In The Nature of Space, pioneering Afro-Brazilian geographer Milton Santos attends to globalization writ large and how local and global orders intersect in the construction of space. Santos offers a theory of human space based on relationships between time and ontology. He argues that when geographers consider the inseparability of time and space, they can then transcend fragmented realities and partial truths without trying to theorize their way around them. Based on these premises, Santos examines the role of space, which he defines as indissoluble systems of objects and systems of actions in social processes, while providing a geographic contribution to the production of a critical social theory.