Final answer:
The author's purpose in the first paragraph is to describe the setting and its significance to the story's themes, using vivid imagery to paint a picture in the reader's mind.
Step-by-step explanation:
The student is asking about the author's purpose in the first paragraph of a given text.
To determine this purpose, consider if the author's intent is to persuade, inform, entertain, describe, or explain.
Based on the information provided, the paragraph sets the scene and relates it to the main themes of the book, suggesting that the author aims to describe the setting and its significance to the narrative.
The details of the valley, trees, and fawns contribute to creating a vivid picture in the reader's mind, which is important for understanding the story's backdrop and foreshadowing potential symbolic meanings, such as those represented by colors like white, grey, and green.