Crowing of the Red Cock

The Crowing of the Red Cock

Across the Eastern sky has glowed 

The flicker of a blood-red dawn, 

Once more the clarion cock has crowed, 

Once more the sword of Christ is drawn. 

A million burning rooftrees light 

The world-wide path of Israel's flight. 

Where is the Hebrew's fatherland? 

The folk of Christ is sore bestead; 

The Son of Man is bruised and banned, 

Nor finds whereon to lay his head. 

His cup is gall, his meat is tears, 

His passion lasts a thousand years. 

Each crime that wakes in man the beast, 

Is visited upon his kind. 

The lust of mobs, the greed of priest, 

The tyranny of kings, combined 

To root his seed from earth again, 

His record is one cry of pain. 

When the long roll of Christian guilt 

Against his sires and kin is known, 

The flood of tears, the life-blood spilt, 

The agony of ages shown, 

What oceans can the stain remove, 

From Christian law and Christian love? 

Nay, close the book; not now, not here, 

The hideous tale of sin narrate, 

Reëchoing in the martyr's ear, 

Even he might nurse revengeful hate, 

Even he might turn in wrath sublime, 

With blood for blood and crime for crime. 

Coward? Not he, who faces death, 

Who singly against worlds has fought, 

For what? A name he may not breathe, 

For liberty of prayer and thought. 

The angry sword he will not whet, 

His nobler task is -- to forget. 

                                                                            --Emma Lazarus

Emma Lazarus’ poems can be divided into two time periods. First the poems that are written prior to 1880 and the second are the poems written after 1880. The poems written before 1880 are considered the poems of natural and romantic themes while the poem that is written after the period of 1880 are the poem which are structured with a sense of Zionism and her self- awareness about  being a Jew.

   In the year 1881, the Russian pogroms took place which was triggered by the assassination of Tsar Alexander II by a group of people in which Jews played a small role. The Russian pogroms were the most horrible thing which happened in Russia and the killings of many Jews resulted in their migration to US. The attacks in Russia made Emma Lazarus furious. She wrote this poem in which she outspokenly pointed out the hatred which was spread against Jews.

In the poem Lazarus says that there is bloodshed everywhere which refers to the Russian pogroms “Across the Eastern sky has glowed, the flicker of a blood-red dawn”. The houses are burnt which is evident from the lines “A million burning rooftrees light”. She says in the poem that once more the sword has been cast out. In the poem she is comparing the crucifixion of Christ to the suffering of Jews. The poem says that the Jews have suffered a lot since ages. The poetess is trying to say that there has been a lot of violence against Jews by the Christians in the name of God. The God who was crucified long ago, the people can still hear his painful cries but not the cries of innocent Jews. She talks about the lust of the mobs who raped innocent women in the pogroms. She talks about the greed of priests. She says in the poem that there is no guilt of killing the innocents and the Christians talk about love and law but what about the pain they are inflicting on the Jews which will put a stain on their names?  Then she says that there is a need to end this hateful and sinful violence because even Christ may not be able to bear it. He has died for spreading love and not hate. He would not like any one to dwell on the past and “nurse revengeful hate”. And God has never wanted to shed blood for blood and commit crime for crime. And she ends the poem by saying that God has always known to forgive not kill by sharpening his sword.

The poem is considered very sharp because of her outspoken nature in the poem and her views against anti-Semitism. In the poem the poet tells about the need of establishing a Jewish land.