For some stock market pros history is the ultimate guide. These investors, who build sophisticated charts and graphs from years or decades of market return data, think stocks repeat certain behaviors during downturns and recoveries. This group — call them chartists or market technicians — have gained some notoriety lately as people look for any signs the worst is behind them. The current buzzwords: The stock market may experience a “V,” “W,” “U” or “L” shaped recovery. Don’t worry if all that doesn’t make sense to you. Below, we walk through five scenarios for how a recovery — a technical one at least — could take shape.