Although the events dramatized in this chapter are trivial, they offer Jake additional opportunities to react to Robert Cohn, thereby further characterizing both Cohn and himself.
Now Cohn seems "not so simple" as he was before visiting his American publisher and "not so nice," according to Jake. After an unsuccessful marriage at a young age and his rebound relationship with Frances, Cohn is discovering that women find him attractive, and this, combined with the publication of his novel, has given him a swelled head. Also, Jake tells us that reading a book called The Purple Land has given Cohn unrealistic expectations about life and love; these expectations in turn have made Cohn dissatisfied.
Jake, on the other hand, knows the hard truths about the world — presumably from experience, though we don't yet know the particular nature of that experience. Jake admires bullfighters because they live their lives "all the way up." Although a writer, Jake knows that you can't learn about the world from the "splendid imaginary amorous adventures" described in a book. Only living itself — preferably "all the way up" — is truly valuable in this way. The reference in this chapter to bullfighting also foreshadows much of the novel's second half.
Finally, the mystery of Jake's situation deepens, and our interest in him increases correspondingly. Cohn points out that both of them will be dead in thirty-five years, and Jake's response is that "It's one thing I don't worry about" — inspiring the reader to wonder what Jake does worry about. In response to Cohn's suggested South America journey, Jake has this to say: "[G]oing to another country doesn't make any difference. I've tried all that. You can't get away from yourself by moving from one place to another." Why did Jake try "all that"? Why would he want to get away from himself? Finally, and most intriguingly, Jake tells us of his "rotten habit of picturing the bedroom scenes of my friends." The plot thickens, so to speak.
