In closed or insular societies, the sacrificial mechanism borne from scapegoating is meant to be a final act of justification for the society. The act of sacrifice becomes a powerful cathartic mechanism, meant to purge society of the violence created by mimetic conflict.
However, this mechanism works most effectively when it occurs unconsciously, never been seen or considered as a ‘mechanism’.
In modern, more diverse societies, the sacrificial mechanism is often weakened because the victim is exposed as a victim. This exposing, or unveiling, thereby dethrones the whole founding myth the sacrifice was to uphold, stripping it of its power.