With Shakespeare: Poet and Citizen, Kiernan displays how profoundly sensitive Shakespeare was to the massive social and political upheavals of his age. During the playwright's lifetime, he saw the first challenges to monarchical rule, as well as serious transformations in England's social hierarchy. Shakespeare witnessed and capitalized on these events, using major social changes, such as rebellious new female roles, prominently in his comedies, which feature identity confusion, gender bending, and cross-dressing. His historical plays, similarly, reflect the demise of feudal allegiances and the development of the modern state. By placing these plays within the context of England's emerging modernity, Kiernan brilliantly upends our conventional perceptions of Shakespeare's work.