Final answer:
Authors develop themes about new journeys using various techniques like setting the story in a particular season or creating parallels between different settings. These elements, like the spring setting, can symbolically represent beginnings and renewal associated with new journeys. Analyzing motifs and settings further helps in understanding the overarching theme.
Step-by-step explanation:
To determine how an author develops a theme about new journeys, one might look at various narrative elements. In the provided options, setting a story in the spring (A), employing a mild, gentle tone (B), drawing a parallel between two places such as Winesburg and the city (C), and illustrating a character's immaturity (D) are all potential techniques. However, since the concept of new journeys often relates to change and growth, setting the story in the spring could symbolically represent beginnings and renewal, a common theme associated with new journeys. Likewise, creating parallels between different settings can highlight the character’s transition or development from one state or place to another, which is another way to develop such a theme.
Moreover, analyzing motifs, symbols, or the setting itself can be crucial in understanding the overarching theme. Motifs often present through repetition to draw emphasis on certain ideas that lead to a theme, and they can be symbolic of broader concepts within the narrative. Thus, authors might set their story during a specific season or in contrasting places to emphasize themes such as growth, transition, and the natural progression of life represented by new journeys. These elements can also directly affect the mood or tone of the work, providing a backdrop that reinforces the theme the author wishes to convey.