Literature and the advancement of gender balancing in Nigeria

Nigerian oral literature evolved as scripted literature in response to the European assertion that Africa had no literature with diverse thematic constructs with gender equity being conspicuously out of the question.
This was however short lived and with increased exposure of women to education and occupations, a lot of changes have become evident. With men also becoming sensitive to global trends, events have taken a new dimension. This paper explores several works in Nigerian literature to determine show changes in gender consciousness in the works of Nigerian writers. The focus of this paper therefore is on the thematic concerns of selected works in different periods of the development of literature in Nigeria. The levels of discussion in the p?per cover the pre-colonial Nigerian literature to 1970s; Nigerian literature from 1980s; Nigerian female writers and feminism; gender balancing and male-feminist Nigerian writers; reconstructing the feminine tradition; women and productivity and valuing male and female gender. Discussions include male and female writers capturing masculine and feminine views and thus showing gender sensitivity and balancing in varied designations in Nigerian society. The approach is an analytical stud) of selected novels of Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo and Chimamanda Adichie.