Let's take a moment here to point out the obvious connection between Elliott's idea of five advancing waves and Dow's three advancing phases of a bull market. It seems clear that Elliott's idea of three up waves, with two intervening corrections, fits nicely with the Dow Theory. While Elliott was no doubt influenced by Dow's analysis, it also seems clear that Elliott believed he had gone well beyond Dow's theory and had in fact improved on it. It's also interesting to note the influence of the sea on both men in the formulation of their theories. Dow compared the major, intermediate, and minor trends in the market with the tides, waves, and ripples on the ocean. Elliott referred to "ebbs and flows" in his writing and named his theory the "wave" principle