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From: ignatz@ihuxx.UUCP (Dave Ihnat, Chicago, IL)
Newsgroups: net.misc
Subject: Re: Is Victoria Alice?
Message-ID: <734@ihuxx.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 30-Apr-84 18:32:19 EDT
Article-I.D.: ihuxx.734
Posted: Mon Apr 30 18:32:19 1984
Date-Received: Tue, 1-May-84 19:02:52 EDT
References: <408@ccieng5.UUCP>
Organization: AT&T Bell Labs, Naperville, IL
Lines: 36

Yes, I heard a radio article on WBEZ (the Chicago Public Radio
station) concerning this.  Specifically, Dr. Dobson has been alleged
to have worked as a ghost-writer for Queen Victoria by a small
group of 'researchers' at some college. (This being radio, and my
being on the Eisenhower destruction zone at the time, I forget the
peoples' names or the institution sponsoring them; contact WBEZ if
you're really interested.)  Their criteria for this belief:

-Most first stories are autobiographical; 'Alice' clearly wouldn't be
 for Dobson, but would fit quite well for Queen V.

-Most autobiographical first stories include characters from real
 life; several from 'Alice' fit for Queen V., esp. the White Rabbit
 for her father, the Duke of Wellington (He died when Queen V. was
 some weeks old, so she, in the estimation of these worthies, would
 see him as having only the function of breeding to produce her--and
 rabbitts are good at breeding), and the Red Queen, who was supposed
 to be her scheming mother.

-They did a computer study on--get this--the frequency of the use of
 the word 'very' in 'Alice', and in the Queen's diary.  They found a
 rate of incidence for the two that exactly matched! (Gosh, it came
 from a computer, don't y'know, so, like, it's GOT to be right...)

All in all, *I* found the conclusion far-fetched, the conjectures just
that, and their 'computer analysis' pitiable.  And a representative of
an organization that was something on the order of the Baker's Street
Irregulars, but dedicated to the works of Dobson, felt the same way--I
think, were I one of these people proposing the theory, I'd rather have
stood under Thin Man in August, '45 rather than face this guy's
rebuttal.

All requests for more info > ${WBEZ Chicago}

				Dave Ihnat
				ihuxx!ignatz