TRANSCENDING ECOLOGICAL ANALYSIS IN KAINE AGARY’S YELLOW YELLOW, TANURE OJAIDE’S THE ACTIVIST AND HELON HABILA’S OIL ON WATER.

Abstract

The Niger-Delta crisis has generated a sustained literary engagement  in response to the socio-political realities of the region. However, despite the tendency of Niger Delta writers to dwell extensively on environmental issues in their works, this work argues that environmental matters cannot be the sole issues pursued in Niger-Delta Literature. Drawing on the ecocritical and sociological theory, this study analyses the interplay of environmental, social, economic and moral issues embedded in these texts. It demonstrates that human greed, political corruption, social irresponsibility and collective complicity are connected to environmental degradation and cannot be examined in isolation. As a literary genre, the novel offers different representations of the Niger-Delta crisis that transcend environmental issues alone.  This study therefore, points out that Niger-Delta Literature does not focus on a singular theme but demands an interdisciplinary approach.

Key Words: Niger-Delta Literature, Beyond Ecocriticism, Ecocriticism, sociology of Literature.