Historical, Social, and Cultural Context

American Splendor has some influence from the counterculture movement from the 60’s (also known as the hippie movement) where people explored their rights and freedom, opposing the conventional norms of society. The influence of this movement is especially in Remembering Be-ins were Harvey reflects on his experiences interacting with hippies as this movement occurred around him. The counterculture of the 60’s bled into the 70’s and greatly influenced the culture and lifestyle. The culture of the 70’s and Cleveland played a great role in American Splendor since it affected people's beliefs, morals, interactions, speech, and aspirations. Sexual liberation was also a significant movement that once again challenged the social stigmas of sex. In How I Spent my Summer Vacation: 1972 Harvey’s relationship with his friends girlfriend is very open; in today’s times that situation would be much much scandalous and disrespectful (Pekar 7).