"It Could Happen To Me" Revisited - AI Analyzes Why the Birth Facts Were Hidden

 I wrote "It Could Happen To Me" -- A Sad Family Tree Story (it is AI-assisted historical fiction, not anyone's real story) and received a comment from Barbara saying:  "... it leaves me wondering about the foundational lie. Why were the facts of his birth hidden from him? Did a parent, aunt, uncle or other living relative have answers?"

(image created by X Grok 3 AI tool)

I went back to Google Gemini 2.0 Flash and asked the question.  Here is what Gemini suggested:

The story doesn't explicitly state why the facts of Elias's father, Arthur's, birth parents were hidden from him. However, we can explore some possible reasons based on common scenarios in genealogy and family secrets:

Possible Reasons for Concealment:

• Adoption: Arthur may have been adopted, and the circumstances surrounding the adoption could have been kept secret due to social stigma, the desire to protect Arthur, or a closed adoption process. 

• Out-of-Wedlock Birth: If Arthur was born outside of marriage, this was often a source of shame and secrecy in past generations. The parents might have concealed the truth to avoid social ostracism or protect the child's reputation. 

• Traumatic Circumstances: Arthur's biological parents' situation might have involved trauma, such as death, abandonment, or difficult social conditions, leading those who raised him to shield him from the painful truth. 

• Misattributed Parentage: There's a possibility that Arthur himself was unaware of his true parentage, perhaps raised by a stepfather or another relative who was assumed to be his biological father. 

• Desire for a "Normal" Family: Those raising Arthur might have wanted him to feel like he belonged to a traditional family unit and chose not to reveal a different or more complex reality. 

• Family Shame or Scandal: The circumstances of Arthur's birth might have been tied to a family scandal or a situation that relatives wanted to keep hidden to protect the family's reputation.

Likelihood of Living Relatives Having Answers:

It's highly likely that a parent (if still living), or other close relatives such as aunts, uncles, or older cousins on his father's side could have had answers, depending on when and why the information was concealed.

• Parents: If Arthur's biological parents were still alive, they would undoubtedly hold the most direct knowledge. However, they might have chosen to maintain the secrecy. 

• Aunts and Uncles: Siblings of Arthur's biological parents or the relatives who raised him might have been privy to the truth, especially if they were involved in the circumstances surrounding his birth or upbringing. 

• Older Cousins: Depending on the family dynamics and the timing of the concealment, older cousins might have overheard conversations or been aware of family secrets.

Elias's Next Steps:

Elias now faces a complex and potentially emotional journey. He has the factual evidence from the DNA and records, but understanding the why behind the secrecy will likely require reaching out to living relatives on both the side he thought was his and the newly discovered side. This could involve delicate conversations and the potential uncovering of long-held family secrets.

The sadness of Elias's initial discovery might be tempered by the opportunity to learn more about his true heritage and the reasons behind his father's unknown past. However, it's a path that requires sensitivity and understanding.

I like the bullet points in the explanation -- they are all plausible scenarios.

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Links to my blog posts about using Artificial Intelligence are on my Randy's AI and Genealogy page.  Links to AI information and articles about Artificial Intelligence in Genealogy by other genealogists are on my AI and Genealogy Compendium page.

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