Eduardo F. Gutiérrez González

Eduardo Gutiérrez is a Doctoral candidate at the University of Oxford, seeking to contribute to peacebuilding from theological and philosophical reflection. After studying philosophy —BA and MA—, Eduardo worked in faculties of Philosophy and Political Science in Bogotá before doing an MSt in Science & Religion at Oxford. His dissertation offered a philosophical engagement with J.R.R. Tolkien’s literary imagination and suggested ways in which its architecture can contribute to the development of a sub-creative theology.

His current DPhil research focuses on the role of imagination in belief transformation in authors across diverse fields, Tolkien among them, and explores its potential use for fostering peace and reconciliation in Colombia. He has been appointed Junior Research Fellow in Humanities and Social Sciences at Blackfriars Hall, Oxford, starting October 2023.

Eduardo loves world-building in all forms of art, especially in literature, and has a long obsession with the transformative power of dialogue and analogical reasoning.

Tolkien-related work:

• (2023) Tolkien, Cosmopoiesis, & The Imagination with a Thousand Faces, talk for the Oxford C. S. Lewis Society.
• (2022) Presentation on Tolkien for the Symposium and Conference «The Christian Literary Imagination» (Georgetown University, Blackfriars Hall, Campion Hall - Oxford).
• (2021) Invited Speaker for Seminars and Graduate Class sessions on Tolkien’s On Fairy Stories essay («Creative Process» Class at U. Jorge Tadeo Lozano – Bogotá; «Oriel Talks» at Oriel College – Oxford)
• (2020) MSt Dissertation J. R. R. Tolkien’s Concept of Sub-Creation & the Quest for the Religious Imagination (Oriel College - Oxford).