Mishnah and the Social Formation of the Early Rabbinic Guild

Where do the origins of the rabbinic movement lie, and how might
evidence from the early rabbinic literature be made to reveal
those origins?

In order to shed light on the early social formation of the
rabbinic guild of masters, Lightstone brings the theoretical and
methodological insights of socio-rhetorical analysis to examine
Mishnah, ......