Theoretical reflections on mass consciousness: is it possible to find the essence?

The article attempts to carry out a theoretical review and generalization of some of the key properties of mass consciousness identified by leading modern scientists. Its main content is contained in the title, which suggests the search for an answer to the question whether the phenomenon of mass consciousness has an essence. The author clears up the position of J. Baudrillard that the desire to clarify the content of the term of mass is truly absurd - it is an attempt to give meaning to something that does not have it. The author believes that there are invariant correlations between the basic term of mass and its derivative - mass consciousness. Through an attempt to find some stable properties of mass consciousness, the author denotes its essential content. The article deals with sociological, socio-psychological, activity and other approaches to the interpretation of mass consciousness, features that distinguish it from ordinary and specialized consciousness, as well as collective consciousness and public opinion. The development of problems of mass consciousness in the Soviet scientific literature was hindered by the fact that it was considered as an attribute of mass society and as an alternative to class-consciousness. The problem of layers and fields of mass consciousness and its historical types has not been properly investigated yet.