Under the influence of democracy, complex traditional cultural forms—originally permeated with deep Christian symbols and a multiplicity of meanings—have given way to simplified, standardized models characteristic of postmodern civilization.

Cultural Transformation: From Sacred Complexity to Secular Simplicity

Under the influence of democracy, complex traditional cultural forms—originally permeated with deep Christian symbols and a multiplicity of meanings—have given way to simplified, standardized models characteristic of postmodern civilization. This is evident in the shift from the layered richness of traditional heritage to consumerist and mass-produced paradigms, where individual tastes and superficial perceptions, often shaped by mass media, have become dominant. As noted in the following statement:

"The flourishing complexity of former Christian culture—both Western European and Russian—has been replaced, as Konstantin Leontiev predicted, by a simplified, disintegrated, omnivorous postmodern civilization, in which, alas, self-affirming mediocrity has triumphed, embodied in that average European, the consumer par excellence, truly turned into an instrument of global destruction." (source: link txt, page: 631)

This process was also accompanied by a transition in the political, social, and cultural spheres—from traditionally religious ways of thinking to a secular ideology where mass communication channels play a significant role in shaping public consciousness. As emphasized:

"A secularized society is nevertheless not free from ideology, a vague and nonviolent one that forms the consciousness of the average person, especially through mass media. Moreover, a system of interpreting the world reduced to itself asserts a kind of visible empiricism and the subjectivism of pleasure." (source: link txt, page: 70)

And additionally:

"Various domains of collective existence—political, social, cultural—have gradually freed themselves from any Christian orientation. Science, technology, knowledge and the arts, the state, and economic life are henceforth positioned outside the so-called religious sphere." (source: link txt, page: 70)

Thus, under the influence of democratic transformations, there is a movement from the historically complex, traditionally religious forms of cultural heritage toward more secularized and standardized models, where consumer culture, mass ideology, and a simplified understanding of the world are valued. This phenomenon is driven by a shift in public consciousness, with Christian traditions giving way to more universal, yet less multifaceted, standards of cultural production.