Dorian, an Imitation

Will Self's Dorian, an Imitation transplants Oscar Wilde's classic The Picture of Dorian Gray into the London art scene of the 1980s and 1990s. Set against a backdrop of AIDS, aristocratic excess, and Princess Diana's cultural reign, the novel follows the exploits of impossibly beautiful Dorian Gray and his circle of wealthy friends. The central supernatural element is reimagined for the video age - instead of an oil painting, Dorian's soul is captured in "Cathode Narcissus," an installation piece by artist Basil Hallward. As Dorian maintains his pristine youth despite a lifestyle of drug use and debauchery, the video installation records the corruption that should be marking his actual form. The novel maintains the core characters and plot structure of Wilde's original while updating the setting and social context. Lord Henry Wotton remains the witty but amoral aristocrat leading Dorian astray, while Basil Hallward ("Baz") represents artistic devotion and moral conscience. Beyond its surface as a contemporary gothic tale, the novel examines themes of narcissism, mortality, and authenticity in an era defined by media images and artificial preservation of youth. The parallel drawn with Princess Diana adds commentary on celebrity culture and public persona versus private reality.

Readers appreciate Self's creative adaptation of Wilde's classic into 1980s London's gay culture and art scene. Many note the clever parallels between AIDS and Dorian's corruption, calling it thematically resonant. The prose style receives praise for capturing Wilde's wit while adding modern edge. Common criticisms include the dense, verbose writing that some find pretentious or difficult to follow. Multiple readers mention struggling to finish the book due to its pacing. Several reviews note the explicit sexual content feels gratuitous rather than purposeful. Ratings: Goodreads: 3.4/5 (1,200+ ratings) Amazon: 3.7/5 (50+ ratings) Sample reader comments: "Brilliant update that captures the original's spirit while saying something new" - Goodreads "Too focused on shock value, loses the subtle horror of Wilde's version" - Amazon "Self's vocabulary sent me to the dictionary every few pages" - LibraryThing The book seems to resonate most with readers already familiar with both Wilde's original and 1980s London subculture.

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🎨 The video art installation central to the plot, "Cathode Narcissus," reflects the emergence of video art as a revolutionary medium in the 1980s, pioneered by artists like Nam June Paik. 🎭 Oscar Wilde's original "The Picture of Dorian Gray" (1890) was initially published in Lippincott's Monthly Magazine and caused such scandal that British reviewers called for Wilde's prosecution for violating public morality. 🌟 Princess Diana, referenced in the novel's parallel storyline, was herself a subject of numerous artistic works during the 1980s-90s, including Andy Warhol's iconic screen prints created in 1982. 💉 The novel's exploration of 1980s Britain coincides with the peak of the AIDS crisis in the UK, when cases rose from 108 in 1982 to over 12,000 by 1990. 🎬 Will Self's decision to transform the painted portrait into video art echoes the real-world shift in British art during the 1990s, when the Young British Artists movement revolutionized contemporary art with innovative media and shocking imagery.