Ekwensi (1981) preoccupied himself with contemporary issues in the Nigerian Society more than any other Nigerian writer. His novel Iska, set in the North, captures vividly the ethnic conflict situation in Nigeria. He guides the reader through his characters to the root causes of ethnic conflict or violence in Nigeria and the likely solutions to the conflicts. This paper examined the causes of ethnic conflict or violence among Nigerian ethnic groups as expressed in the text, Iska, and showed ways in which they could be clarified and possibly resolved. The major aim and objective was to prove that fiction can be relevant in conflict resolution in Nigeria. New Historicism and Instrumentalism came in handy in the conceptual framework with regard to theories and critical analysis. The method that was used in the process of doing this paper was largely inductive and deductive and references were made to empirical researches that supported the ground for the inductive and deductive methods used.

Keywords: Literature, Ethnic conflict, Ethnic violence, Conflict Resolution, Nigerian Society, New Historicism, Instrumentalism