Summary of Amy Argetsinger's There She Was

By IRB Media

Get the Summary of Amy Argetsinger's There She Was in 20 minutes. Please note: This is a summary & not the original book. Original book introduction: The sash. The tears. The glittering crown. And of course, that soaring song. For all of its pomp and kitsch, the Miss America pageant is indelibly written into the American story of the past century. From its giddy origins as a summer’s-end tourist draw in Prohibition-era Atlantic City, it blossomed into a televised extravaganza that drew tens of millions of viewers in its heyday and was once considered the highest honor that a young woman could achieve.

For two years, Washington Post reporter and editor Amy Argetsinger visited pageants and interviewed former winners and contestants to unveil the hidden world of this iconic institution. There She Was spotlights how the pageant survived decades of social and cultural change, collided with a women’s liberation movement that sought to abolish it, and redefined itself alongside evolving ideas about feminism.

• Language: English
• Publisher: IRB Media
• Release date: Dec 6, 2021
• ISBN: 9781669341611

IRB Media

With IRB books, you can get the key takeaways and analysis of a book in 15 minutes. We read every chapter, identify the key takeaways and analyze them for your convenience.

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Insights on Amy Argetsinger's There She Was

Contents

Insights from Chapter 1

Insights from Chapter 2

Insights from Chapter 3

Insights from Chapter 4

Insights from Chapter 5

Insights from Chapter 6

Insights from Chapter 7

Insights from Chapter 8

Insights from Chapter 9

Insights from Chapter 10

Insights from Chapter 11

Insights from Chapter 12

Insights from Chapter 13

Insights from Chapter 14

Insights from Chapter 1

#1

In 1968, members of New York Radical Women organized a protest against the Miss America pageant, which was just another way of showing their scorn for what they called the kitsch and the triviality of women’s lives. They brought a trash can filled with bras and other women’s undergarments to Atlantic City, where they staged a protest.

#2

The Miss America pageant, which was created in 1921, was challenged that year when feminists protested it. It was the first time in its history that the Miss America pageant was questioned.

#3

Eventually, the group of friends went on a Miss America trip, and it became a thing. They would cheer for the good talents, laugh at the bad ones, and basically just shrug at the swimsuit competition - come on, they were all under twenty-five, of course they all looked great.

#4

The Miss America pageant was a chance for the public to get to know the young women who would soon be competing for the attention of millions of men. It was a chance for the author to get to know them, too.

#5

The former Miss America winners were friends who had so much in common, and who had been through so much together. They had all been attacked and criticized for what they wore.

#6

The author traveled to Atlantic City, where the Miss America pageant was held, to meet the young women who still wanted to be Miss America.

Insights from Chapter 2

#1

The Miss Arlington pageant was not well attended, with only three contestants showing up. The winner was not selected