Gateway to Freedom by Eric Foner. Your paper is a critique of the book, not a summary that simply goes on and on.

Your paper is a critique of the book, not a summary that simply goes on and on: “first he says this, then he says that….” Instead you are going to have three main sections to your critique: I. Introduction—1/2 to 1 page: Writing a good intro is essential to a good critique. In this section you should supply the basic historical context of the book. This basically answers the what, when, where questions. Then you need to identify Foner’s thesis. You should not limit yourself to a single-sentence thesis like this: “Foner says that a lot of people affected the Underground Railroad.” Instead, you should devote a few sentences to the thesis and identify the specific issues that you’re going to analyze. II. Body—3-4 pages: In this section you are going to explain how Foner demonstrates his thesis. Identify some of his sources and explain several specific examples he uses. Organize your ideas into paragraphs that address specific topics. Make sure that each paragraph has a clear topic sentence that identifies the theme for the paragraph. Be certain that you explain how the information supports his arguments. III. Personal reaction—1/2 page: I didn’t write the book so feel free to criticize it if you wish. In a few sentences just offer your assessment of the book. Did you like it? If so, why? If not, what should he have done? Also, it’s possible that you may not like the book and still think that he did a good job so explain whether or not you think he succeeded. Your paper should be four to five pages in length, written in 12-point font with standard margins. I do not need or want headers on any of the pages. Page numbers at the bottom are all I need. You are going to submit a paper online and also bring a stapled copy to class. A cover page with your name and title is all you need to attach. Please staple it. You are free to use some quotations from the book but be very careful not to plagiarize. Make sure that direct quotes are in quotation marks. Do not let quotes dominate your paper; a few brief quotes is sufficient. If you use a direct quote, put the page number in parenthesfktes at the end of the sentence