A theoretical exploration of the meanings of social change that result or are implied when social movements are analysed. He shows how social movements research is able to connect everyday life and dramatic events, refusing the separation of the mundane from the extraordinary, and connect social continuities and discontinuities. Furthermore, consideration of the nature of collective identity within social movement research offers a way to approach the ethical concerns of social movements as they emerge at times self-consistent at times fragmented. Social movements provide a valuable object for the analysis of social change.