Good post, Anna Licumo, though I disagree a bit.
You say Gandalf would have viewed the completion of the mission as more important than the rules that governed the mission. In reply to this I'll direct your attention back to the quote from Letters, where Tolkien says "for all he could know at that moment he was the only person who could direct the resistance to Sauron successfully, and all his mission was vain. He was handing over to the Authority that ordained the Rules, and giving up personal hope of success." Here Gandalf did exactly what you don't believe he would have done: he remained subject to the rules, though it meant (for all he knew) the failure of his mission and an eventual victory for Sauron.
|