What if the people in power could change the facts to suit their narrative so completely we didn’t know it happened — until the clocks were striking 13?
I first read George Orwell’s 1949 novel, 1984, IN 1984 as a high school junior. It was part of our required reading in my APA English class. The concept of clocks striking 13 baffled me.
I read it again in 1997 with my own junior English and US History classes. It fit well with our study of WWII. My students were as engrossed in Orwell’s fictional world as I’d been. The concept of clocks striking 13 wasn’t nearly as baffling.
I’ve revisited 1984 several times, both book and movie, since. One thing always happens when I do. I realize that a work of fiction can capture mankind’s thirst for infinite power so adeptly that at any given moment, “the clocks were striking thirteen” doesn’t seem implausible at all.
Fiction, after all, does have some element of truth in it.
Orwell wrote the novel during WWII. A time when totalitarianism had a foothold throughout Europe. With Adolph Hitler in power in Germany, Joseph Stalin in Russia, and Benito Mussolini in Italy, the clock striking thirteen was not an opening line to a fictional novel. It was reality.
Government propaganda, much like the Newspeak in Orwell’s fictitious Oceania, had taken root. Big Brother was indeed watching. The price for individual thought, criticism, and above all action, was indeed high.
Still, as my students progressed through the novel and as we discussed its correlations and implications, they didn’t consider it a possibility or a threat. Not in America.
Fast forward to 2026, and I’ve begun to wonder if they consider it differently now. If we all do.
If the last few years have taught us anything, it’s that “the clock striking thirteen” isn’t just a metaphor. Not anymore.
Lunacy in the service of evil is a powerful force. Yes, it’s foolishness, madness, and insanity. But it’s also a powerful tool.
To a thinking person, lunacy is obvious. To an indoctrinated mind, it’s irrelevant.
Indoctrination is one of the hallmarks of totalitarianism.
In order to gain control, one must first destroy individual thought. To construct an alternate narrative, you must first destroy the existing one. You must rewrite history. You must disassemble individuality and replace it with the collective. Groupthink isn’t simply an idea; it’s a tool.
Thus, a carefully crafted narrative arises in its place. One that places control in the hands of the crafter.
With total control, the crafter steers the ship. To deviate from the narrative means being thrown overboard.
Fear keeps the masses in check.
Wokeness is an example of how fear can compel otherwise logical people to jump on board. No one wants to be publicly maligned or cancelled.
Racism is another. Or, rather, the accusation of being racist. A tool used to purposely divide. No one wants to be assigned to the “wrong” side.
Equity is yet another. Rather than equal opportunity, equal justice, or equal rights, ‘equitable’ replaces them. In order to take advantage of the resources allotted to equity, one must fully embrace the lunacy.
Even unity doesn’t escape the madness. In true Orwellian fashion, unity no longer means a common brotherhood working toward the common good. It no longer means sharing in and valuing a common heritage. It now means one is either united under the new narrative OR they’re the enemy.
Fear of paying that price works.
Since 2021, how many unnecessary and untested Covid vaccines have been administered through fear? Fear of demonization? Of losing one’s job?
How many voices have been silenced through fear of suffering social media suicide? Political suicide? Social and financial repercussions?
How many questions regarding the integrity of our elections and the corruption in our highest institutions have gone unasked for fear of the same?
How many seemingly logical people have bought into the misguided rhetoric regarding biology and gender to the point that they can’t even accurately answer the question: Can a biological man give birth?
And it doesn’t end there.
Conditioning is a psychological tool. And a very powerful one at that.
Conditioning works because it happens slowly. Like the frog in the pot of water, we’re lulled into a false sense of security. We don’t realize the temperature is slowly rising until it’s too late.
By the end of 1984, Winston had been fully relieved of his individuality. It has been conditioned out of him. He fully embraces Big Brother and everything that means. For him, “2+2=5” is reality.
For us, the clock is still ticking. Will we, like Winston, have won the victory over ourselves by the time it’s striking 13? Or will the voices of wisdom and truth restore our faith and our humanity?
I pray that they do.
© 2026 | All rights reserved.
JN Fenwick is a Florida-based former American history teacher and writer. She is the author/editor of In the Eye of the Storm.
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