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Full Idea
Mundane being, the being we know, is general because it is generally valid for everyone. ...Existenz is never general, and thus not a case that might be subsumed as particular under a universal.
Gist of Idea
Mundane existence is general, falling under universals, but Existens is unique to individuals
Source
Karl Jaspers (Philosophy [1932], vol.2)
Book Ref
'Existentialism', ed/tr. Solomon,Robert C. [Modern Library 1974], p.138
A Reaction
I'm trying to visualise a mode of existence which would fulfil only me, answering to my unique nature, but it looks like a vain delusion. I may be a one-off combination, but I see all of my ingredients in various other people.
Related Idea
Idea 20315 'Existenz' is the potential being, which I could have, and ought to have [Jaspers]
| 20320 | Truth is what unites, and the profound truths create a community [Jaspers] |
| 20315 | 'Existenz' is the potential being, which I could have, and ought to have [Jaspers] |
| 20323 | Freedom needs knowledge, the possibility of arbitrariness, and law [Jaspers] |
| 20322 | I am aware that freedom is possible, and the freedom is not in theory, but in seeking freedom [Jaspers] |
| 20324 | My freedom increases as I broaden my vision of possiblities and motives [Jaspers] |
| 20318 | My helplessness in philosophising reveals my being, and begins its upsurge [Jaspers] |
| 20321 | The struggle for Existenz is between people who are equals, and are utterly honest [Jaspers] |
| 20325 | Once we grasp freedom 'from' things, then freedom 'for' things becomes urgent [Jaspers] |
| 20317 | Mundane existence is general, falling under universals, but Existens is unique to individuals [Jaspers] |
| 20316 | Every decision I make moves towards or away from fulfilled Existenz [Jaspers] |
| 20319 | We want the correct grasp on being that is neither solipsism nor absorption in the crowd [Jaspers] |