title: Mechanism, vitalism and organicism in late nineteenth and twentieth-century biology: the importance of historical context.
abstract: The term 'mechanism' has been used in two quite different ways in the history of biology. Operative, or explanatory mechanism refers to the step-by-step description or explanation of how components in a system interact to yield a particular outcome (as in the 'mechanism of enzyme action' or the 'mechanism of synaptic transmission'). Philosophical Mechanism, on the other hand, refers to a broad view of organisms as material entities, functioning in ways similar to machines--that is, carrying out a variety of activities based on known chemical and physical processes. In the early twentieth century philosophical Mechanism became the foundation of a 'new biology' that sought to establish the life sciences on the same solid and rigorous foundation as the physical sciences, including a strong emphasis on experimentation. In the context of the times this campaign was particularly aimed at combating the reintroduction of more holistic, non-mechanical approaches into the life sciences (organicism, vitalism). In so doing, Mechanists failed to see some of the strong points of non-vitalistic holistic thinking. The two approaches are illustrated in the work of Jacques Loeb and Hans Spemann.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Washington University, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA. allen@biology2.wustl.edu
authors.forename: Garland E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Allen
mesh_terms: D001690:Biological Science Disciplines / Q000266:history*; D001695:Biology / Q000266:history; D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006801:Humans; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D014799:Vitalism / Q000266:history*