What is the difference between bulls and steers in Chapter 13 of The Sun Also Rises?In Jakes group, who are bulls and who are steers? And what does...

The
difference between bulls and steers is that steers have been castrated, while the bulls have
not. As such, the bulls are wild; they "tear in the streets" and "Sometimes they
go right after [the steers] and kill them."

Although Jake and Bill are
talking about literal bulls and steers in this scene, Hemingway wants us to be thinking about
their conversation on a deeper level; that is, we should be considering which members of Jake's
group are like bulls and which are like steers.

Certainly, Jake is a steer.
Having been made impotent in the war, he is no longer violent or aggressive like a bull. Mike
and Robert, on the other hand, almost certainly can be aligned with the bulls. On top of their
penchant for fighting, both characters are constantly emphasizing their virility. Perhaps this
is most obvious in their attempts to court Brett.

Speaking of Brett, she
occupies a sort of middle ground between bull and steer. While she is not as aggressive as Mike
or Robert, she does have a tendency...