This chapter takes its starting point in a paper of Leonard H. Ehrlich on hermeneutics, in which he discussed the validity of valuation in understanding. The chapter discusses schools of history of philosophy, attitudes towards valuation and the relationship between philosophy and other academic disciplines. Jaspers' early teachings are examined, in particular his work on worldviews, as a means of elucidating the history of philosophy. Jaspers' concept of existential will is offered as a means of unraveling the significance and legitimate potential of the study of the history of philosophy.