The Existential Rationalism of Karl Jaspers

Karl Jaspers received much attention in the interwar period as the founder of a new philosophy of existence that, however, was - in tandem with his psychological training, focus on " borderline situations" of human experience, and critique of philosophical systems - often misinterpreted as a form of subjectivism or irrationalism. The study presented here strives to depict the substance of Jaspers' use of the philosophy of existence for a new reconstruction of human rationality, of the universal characteristics of humanity. Understanding these characteristics shall, in his estimation, help us to resist the degradation of human dignity in modern totalitarianism and in the global economic-technological system, in which the values of humanity, as defined by Jaspers' philosophy, have ceased being decisive criteria. The study presents Jaspers' anchoring of existence in the relationship to transcendence and of individuality in the communication with others, as well as his critique of monistic thinking, which in his philosophical conception does not allow for plurality.