This paper deals with the theoretical problems in studying social movements. The Taiwanese anti-nuclear movement is taken as a critical case to reflect on the Theory of New Social Movement (hence, NSM). According to the NSM theory, new social protests after 60s are different in nature from the previous ones. New issues arise because of the structural change of late capitalism. The new politics presents a new social cleavage alongside the old one. Communitarianism, life ethics, postmaterialism are the new collective values. However, in the Taiwanese contest, the anti-nuclear movement is a byproduct of political democratization, rather than late capitalism. The anti-nuclear forces are aligned with the opposition party, and view their effort as extension of democratization. Hence, the applicability of the NSM theory in Taiwan is quite limited. Further scholarship on Taiwanese social movement should take more attention on the indigenous factors.