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The cogito is discussed as well as an objection to it in this 3 page paper. Did Descartes question the thought process used to come up with his solution? Bibliography lists 1 source.
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3 pages (~225 words per page)
File: RT13_SA710Des.rtf
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it were ever doubted. One objection to the idea is as follows: "From the fact that we are thinking it does not seem to be entirely certain that we
exist. For in order to be certain that you are thinking you must know what thought or thinking is, and what your existence is; but since you do not yet
know what these things are, how can you say I am thinking nor when you add therefore I exist do you really know what you are saying" (Descartes 69).
This would doubt the cogito, but Descartes has an answer for it. He claims that there is an inner knowing that really cannot be rationally explained (Descartes 69). A student
claims that while Descartes is a skeptic, how might one know that the power of reason is working correctly? The student asks: "If he is trying to doubt everything why
doesnt he doubt whether his reason is working correctly in making this inference? " Indeed, this is one objection to his cogito. As noted above, he claims that simply saying
one exists because they think it, is not enough. In that statement, he doubts the thought process. This is because he does not accept the cogito at face value. It
is only after answering an objection, that he comes up with a conclusion, which is that while no one can be sure that what they think is accurate or not,
the process does not requisite reflective knowledge (Descartes 69). In other words, the thought process is one that is somehow based on intuition. In fact, such an interpretation of the
cogito seems to resolve the issue. There is no thought process per se. Rather, there is intrinsic knowledge on which one can draw and deem to be "thought." It is
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