Full Idea
When Descartes says 'I doubt therefore I am', is he talking about the spontaneous doubt that reflective consciousness grasps in its instantaneous character, or is he talking of the enterprise of doubting? This ambiguity can lead to serious errors.
Gist of Idea
Is the Cogito reporting an immediate experience of doubting, or the whole enterprise of doubting?
Source
Jean-Paul Sartre (Transcendence of the Ego [1937], II (B))
Book Reference
Sartre,Jean-Paul: 'The Transcendence of the Ego' [Routledge 2004], p.27
A Reaction
Interesting. The obvious response is that it is about the immediate experience, but that leads to the problem of an instantaneous ego, which can't be justified over time. The 'enterprise' gives an enduring ego, but it is a more intellectual concept.