Meme Overview

The 1984 Calendar Template meme illustrates a man's shocking discovery that he is living in a reality reminiscent of George Orwell's dystopian novel '1984'.

Background

The meme originates from a political cartoon by Gary Varvel, which depicts a man learning about the suspension of Donald Trump's Twitter account and the removal of Parler from app stores. As he turns his calendar, he realizes it is 1984, which has become a popular reference among conservatives relating to perceived censorship. Critics have mocked this association, leading to the creation of the 'Wow, This Is Just Like 1984' meme. Users have also adapted Varvel's comic, replacing the wife's text in the original.

How It Began

On January 9th, 2021, Gary Varvel published a political comic in response to Donald Trump's suspension from Twitter following the Capitol breach. This comic marked the inception of what would become a widely shared meme.

Meme Evolution

The comic gained traction as an exploitable meme over the next two weeks. On January 19th, 2021, Reddit user ItalianBall shared a Cyberpunk 2077 edit of the comic on /r/GamingCircleJerk, receiving over 4,400 points. Additionally, Twitter user @MRPolands created an edit featuring a humorous Facebook post about truckers. Varvel later acknowledged the meme edits and expressed intentions to report them to his syndicate.