Tim finally gets frustrated with Jen's questions and with his own feelings of inadequacy, and launches into his first impassioned response of the tutorial. In this response, we see that Tim does actually have an interpretation of this text - it's an interpretation based on his annoyance with all of those "English people" in his class who are insisting on symbolic readings that he doesn't understand.

However, Jen is one of those "English people," and is probably feeling defensive and insecure in the face of Tim's accusations. She defends the symbolic interpretation of the river, and, in so doing, takes the wind out of Tim's sails. To Jen's credit, she probably also is hoping to open up a discussion about the river as a symbol. But this is not where Tim wants to go, and they certainly are not going to be able to go there now that Jen has made this defensive blunder.

It's worth noting that Tim is interested in the historical facts of the story that revolve around the Belgian exploitation of the Congo. The astute tutor would hear the connection to Tim's earlier comments about the natives and the pilgrims.

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