Roosters, is a poem of uncertainty and power. The poem addresses the Bible story of Peter's denial that he was a disciple of Jesus Christ. Jesus told Peter that by the time the rooster crows, Peter would deny any knowledge of Jesus three times. As the evening passed, three times Peter was questioned about Jesus and three times he denied Jesus' existence. .

             Roosters starts off with a description of the surroundings and atmosphere. The setting develops a gloomy and dark arena for the reader to delve into:.

             At four o'clock.

             in the gun-metal blue dark.

             we hear the first crow of the first cock .

             just below.

             the gun-metal blue window.

             and immediately there is an echo.

             off in the distance,.

             then one from the backyard fence,.

             then one, with horrible insistence,.

             grates like a wet match.

             from the broccoli patch,.

             flares, and all over town begins to catch.

             .

             The different uses of adjectives maintain the obscurity of the scene. The narrator seems annoyed by the continuous crowing of the rooster first thing in the morning. By wanting to put an end to the crowing, he/she views the dark and the window as "gun-metal blue". It appears, if the narrator was fully awake, they would shoot the rooster to keep him from crowing. In response, an echo of other roosters rang out across town. The narrator expresses his/her feelings of disgust by stating, "with horrible insistence". The annoyance carries on, as the roosters' chests "planned to command and terrorize the rest". .

             Bishop begins to illustrate the awkward usage of a "stupid" icon like the rooster:.

             over our beds.

             from rusty iron sheds.

             and fences made from old bedsteads,.

             over our churches.

             where the tin rooster perches,.

             over our little wooden northern houses,.

             .

             making sallies.

             from all the muddy alleys,.

             marking out maps like Rand McNally's:.

             glass-headed pins,.

             oil-golds and copper greens,.