On the Ontology of Biological Entities

• Published in: Resonance 2024-09, Vol.29 (9), p.1231-1253
• Main Author: Menon, Vasudev Ramdas
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Biology; Biosphere; Frost, Robert (1874-1963); Ontology
• ISSN: 0971-8044; 0973-712X
• DOI: 10.1007/s12045-024-1231-x

In the first of two articles on the ontology of biological entities (appeared in Resonance, Vol.29, No.8, pp.1111–1126), I had discussed how young students of biology intuitively imagine the biosphere, constructed from the bottom up by physical material entities that act as its building blocks. The nature of being, or ontologies, of these entities, it would seem, depend upon the machination of parts and processes confined within their material demarcating structures like membranes, walls, and skins. I suggested that perhaps there is precedence to this view due to the influence of reductionist and mechanical philosophies upon the early development of biological thought. Additionally, this view is mirrored in the way biology is taught in academic institutions today that could reinforce this part–whole, hierarchical imagination of the biosphere. In this article, I discuss the development of biological thought that took shape in the early part of the 18th century that was influenced by and borrowed from contemporary developments in disciplines outside the natural sciences. It arose primarily as a response to the reductionist and mechanical descriptions of living bodies, and may be seen as a move toward a more holistic understanding of the biosphere. These frameworks bring forth the idea of conceptual unities whose ontologies are dynamic and influenced by changes outside their boundaries. Taken together, both these perspectives are useful and necessary for a student of biology to appreciate the diverse and dynamic nature of the biosphere. A useful guide to understanding material and conceptual boundaries is provided. Once again, I take recourse to Robert Frost’s poem “Mending Wall” to guide our discussions on the topic. Spring is the mischief in me, and I wonderIf I could put a notion in his head:‘Why do they make good neighbors?’ Isn’t itWhere there are cows?But here there are no cows.Before I built a wall I’d ask to knowWhat I was walling in or walling out,And to whom I was like to give offense.Something there is that doesn’t love a wall–An extract from Robert Frost’s “Mending Wall” [1].