By the middle of the twentieth century the shift was obvious. Conflicts increasingly occurred through narratives and political systems competed not only through economic or military strength but through storytelling. As for the Cold War, it was not simply a military standoff but a narrative competition between capitalism and communism. Capitalism promised freedom while Communism promised equality.
Each side tried to persuade the world that its story was the correct one. This translated into battles being fought in newspapers, classrooms and film studios.
Wars still happened, of course, but increasingly they were justified through language first. In other words, wars had to be narrated before they could be fought. Meaning became the opening battlefield while the sword became secondary.
Clause One was quietly maturing.