90 (Melucci 1989, 191)

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(Melucci 1989, 191)

The belief that social movements are a pathological reaction to the stresses and strains of modern society was influenced understandably by the experience of Stalinism and Nazism, which prompted intellectuals’ fear of insurgent masses and their manipulation and control by totalitarian parties and leaders. Considered from our quite different historical situation, it nevertheless becomes clear that the analytical foundations of this view are very weak. To begin with, this view makes the questionable assumption that social order is a normal state of affairs. Collective action is therefore seen as a form of social pathology which is produced by the disequilibrium within a social order. This view also ignores the constructive or creative dimensions of collective action. Even in less structured forms of collective behaviour, people do not act in a void. They are always enmeshed in relations with other actors, and through this interaction they produce meanings, express their needs and activate their relationships. Collective action is never a purely irrational phenomenon. It is always to a degree socially constructed and meaningful to its participants, even when it appears to be anomic or marginal behaviour.... [Melucci, Alberto. 1989. Nomads of the Present. London: Hutchinson Radius.]