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Based on our experimental observations of the resonant stimulated Raman gain and loss spectra in Rb atomic vapor, we propose an alternative interpretation of electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT). We find that, in the presence of a coupling field, a probe beam can exhibit both gain and loss depending on the frequencies of the incident beams. The gain and loss can coexist in a Doppler-broadened system, leading to polarization interference between atoms of different velocities, with a sharp transition from gain to loss as the probe-field frequency is scanned. We use the concept of Raman gain, instead of the commonly accepted quantum Fano interference, to explain the phenomenon of EIT and its transparency window as being due to the suppression of linear absorption by the Raman gain. Using this concept, the phenomena of EIT and Autler-Townes splitting may be explained within the same framework. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]