Kot vsaka znanost tudi biologija pozna razvoj svoje teoretične misli. Ta se je začela že v antiki, mnogo pred nastankom biologije, in je že od takrat razpeta na dva zelo različna pogleda: redukcionistilčnega (Demokrit) in organicističnega (Aristotel). Skozi novi vek sta se oba pogleda na življenje nenehno prepletala, s tem da je v enem obdobju prevladoval eden, v naslednjem pa drugi. Biologija, kakršna je danes, ni samo rezultat empiričnih raziskav, temveč tudi tega zgodovinskega prepletanja svoje misli. V sodobnem času je močno utrjen redukcionizem, ki pa ga postopoma vse bolj »ogroža« bogat razvoj – tako teoretičen kot empiričen – na organicistični strani.

As any science biology demonstrates the development of its theoretical thought. It began in Antiquity, long before the foundation of biology as a distinctive science and included two very different views: reductionist (Democritus) and organicist (Aristotle). Throughout the new age these two views constantly interweaved; at one time one was in power, at the next time the other. Biology as known today is not only the result of its positive empirical development, but also of the historical development of its own theoretical perception of life. In contemporary times reductionism is very much in power, yet it is progressively “endangered” by the steady empirical as well as theoretical growth of organicistic biology.