Dialectics of 'No Victor, No Vanquished'

Abstract This paper studies Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo’s war narratives using the sociological approach to literary criticism. The study takes off by closely examining the historical cum sociological imperatives that necessitated Adimora-Ezeigbo’s literary constructions. Our choice of this approach is necessitated by the fact that literature does not exist in a vacuum; therefore the study of any literary work must of necessity begin with a close examination of the social cum historical forces which incubated the work. The two selected novels are Children of the Eagle (2005) and Roses and Bullets (2014) both of which focus on Nigeria Civil War. The study juxtaposes the post war events in the novels against the context of “No Victor, No Vanquished” proclamation of the Federal Government of Nigeria at the end of the war. Our findings show that there were clearly victors and vanquished in the war as reflected in the two selected novels.