| Dorian, an Imitation | |
| Author: | Will Self |
| Country: | United Kingdom |
| Language: | English |
| Publisher: | Viking Press |
| Release Date: | 26 September 2002 |
| Media Type: | Print Hardcover & Paperback |
| Pages: | 278 pp |
| Isbn: | 0-670-88996-2 |
Dorian, an Imitation is a British novel by Will Self. The book is a modern take on Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray. The novel was originally published by Viking Press in 2002 and subsequently by Penguin in 2003. Self was originally asked to adapt the 1890 Wilde novel into a film screenplay, but this project did not come to fruition. Instead, Self took this uncompleted screenplay and re-worked it into a novel, which he described as "an imitation - and a homage" to the Wilde original.[1]
Self draws correlations between the life of his character Dorian and Diana, Princess of Wales, particularly over the time period from June 1981, the time of the Wedding of Charles, Prince of Wales, and Lady Diana Spencer, up to 1997, the year of Princess Diana's death.[2] [3] The novel adheres closely to Wilde's original in its overall plot, with retaining the names of the key characters Dorian Gray, Henry Wootton, and Basil Hallward (with Hallward receiving the short nickname 'Baz').[4] Updates in Self's novel compared to the Wilde original include the following:
Upon release, Dorian was generally well-received among British press.[5] Globally, Complete Review saying on the consensus "No consensus, though generally at least impressed by aspects of it (and put off by others)".[6]