Red Orc's Rage

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Red Orc's Rage (1991) is a science fiction novel and part of the World of Tiers series of novels by Philip José Farmer. The plot of the book was inspired by the work of American psychiatrist A.James Giannini, M.D, who used earlier books in Farmer's series as role-playing tools and aids to self-analysis. This technique was developed at Yale University and further expanded by Dr. Giannini at Ohio State University. The technique is properly called "projective psychotherapy".It involves immersing the patients in a fictional world which is accessible to the psychiatrist. It is subject to alternative interpretation but not to change.By utilizing a structured fantasy world the subconscious can be directly accessed without confronting resistances of the conscious mind.(1)

[edit] Plot introduction

The novel is about Jim Grimson, a troubled youth undergoing therapy in a psychiatric hospital who is encouraged to role-play Red Orc, a character in science fiction. Jim finds himself actually transported to the fictional World of Tiers, entering the mind and body of the character he role-played in the hospital. In the World of Tiers Red Orc/Jim struggles with an abusive father, a situation mirroring his real-world problems. 1. Giannini,AJ.Use of fiction in therapy.Psychiatric Times.18(7):56-57,2001