Why Bull and Bear Market?

Yesterday, we all did a lower Manhattan tour down to the edge of this island until we met the Bull. According to our friends at St. John's here and others I've asked, the Bull symbolizes a strong market in stock market here while the Bear stands for otherwise.

So, a question popped in my mind. "Why Bull and Bear?" Why not an eagle and a worm, an Elephant and a dolphin, etc. So, I did a small research online and found out that there's no exact origin, or at least a thoroughly proved theory, of these symbols.

Some might argue that the Bull is fierce, so it represents strength or a strong market in investors' quarters. The Bear, meanwhile, seems slow (though, I don't think so) and not as strong. So, why the Bull and the Bear, again?

According to one theory from Investopedia, this Bull and Bear Market symbol originates from their ways of preying upon other animals. Bulls will use their horns to assail preys by shoving them up, but bears will smack their preys down. Thus, their assaults are used as a metaphor to describe the current of a market.

There's also another theory by the same website that explains the history of this Bull-and-Bear-Market metaphor. However, I won't go to that since I know how much we love reading from an original source.

Sankerdas Latthanhot, a Fulbrighter from Laos.