The Genesis of a Systems Paradigm: An Intellectual Response to the Crisis of Modernity

This paper examines the genesis of systems thinking, examining it as a complex intellectual phenomenon that emerged in response to the profound epistemological crisis of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The author focuses on the pivotal period when revolutionary discoveries in physics (the theory of relativity, quantum mechanics) and social upheaval laid bare the Newtonian-Cartesian worldview. The focus is on the intellectual context of the era in which the origins of the systems approach matured. The author carefully reconstructs the conceptual framework that united such diverse movements as the "philosophy of life" (H. Bergson, W. Dilthey), organicism (O. Spengler), stratified ontology (N. Hartmann), and the early theoretical constructs of L. von Bertalanffy. Particular attention is paid to identifying systemic ideas in a seemingly opposing project—the Vienna Circle's program for the unification of science. The work is based on a historical-philosophical, historical method aimed at reconstructing the intellectual context of the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. To ensure the reliability and depth of the conclusions, the author draws on a wide range of primary sources and critical literature. Contextual and comparative methods are used in analyzing the sources. The scientific novelty of the study lies in its decisive rejection of the widespread interpretation that links the genesis of systems thinking exclusively to the mid-20th-century works of Ludwig von Bertalanffy. The main contribution of the work is not a direct analysis of "understudied aspects," but the creation of a solid historical and theoretical foundation demonstrating that systems thinking was a natural product of a profound rethinking of cognitive strategies. The study concludes that the systems approach offered an adequate language for describing the interconnectedness of the world, serving as a new form of rationality. This historical precedent confirms the heuristic value of metadisciplinary synthesis in responding to the challenges of global complexity, which remains relevant for contemporary science. Unlike existing works, which often examine the precursors of systems thinking in isolation, this study specifically emphasizes their dialogue and mutual influence. Using specific examples, the author demonstrates how these ideas interacted to form a unified conceptual framework. Thus, the article represents more than just a historical excursion; it is a fundamental study offering a new, more complex, and integrated picture of the genesis of one of the most influential cognitive paradigms of the 20th century.

Systems thinking, modernism, organicism, wholesness, Ludwig von Bertalanffy, systems research, general systems theory, epistemology, interdisciplinarity, reductionism