We analyze the role of generic proofs in helping students access difficult proofs more easily and naturally. We present three examples of generic proving--an elementary one on numbers, a more advanced one on permutations, and yet more advanced one on groups--and consider the affordances and pitfalls of the method by reflecting on these examples. A virtual classroom scenario is used to bring out the role of the teacher and of classroom interaction in generic proving. Finally, we speculate on the question: Which proofs are more or less amenable to generic proving?