Which character (not too minor) would you say has the MOST freedom of action/true agency in the following stories? (respond for ones you've read/watched obviously) Lord of the Rings Harry Potter Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy Game of Thrones
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I think Saruman's error was in believing that the ring contained only the _power_ of Sauron. In fact the ring _was_ Sauron.
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And is it irrational for an ancient supernatural being to think that if he has a literal piece of his enemy's heart and soul in his hand, he could control or overpower that enemy? I don't see why. It might be and probably is WRONG, but it's not irrational.
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the likeliest outcome of Saruman possessing and wearing the ring would be his transformation into some kind of super Nazgul in the service of Sauron. if he didn't wear the thing the corruption would have taken longer.
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Sauron is patient. a few hundred years should do the trick, assuming Mordor's armies couldn't just outright sack Isengard and reclaim the ring.
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Neither Gandalf nor the Elf lords were omniscient or infallible. All of them made major mistakes regarding various matters. Also, Saruman was more powerful than all of them, at least until Gandalf leveled up. He was definitely older than all but Gandalf...
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... and arguably more knowledgeable than any of them. (Gandalf says specifically that Saruman has been studying ring-lore.) Does it matter how many people think one thing if someone who knows better thinks another?
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well, we're talking ex-post facto here so we already know that in this particular case, yes it did matter and Saruman should have accepted the consensus on the ring. he was arrogant and believed himself superior enough to succeed where others had failed. he was wrong.
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in general is it irrational to break with consensus? that depends on how the consensus was formed. if it's just a social norm then it's not irrational. if it's based on the best available evidence then yes it is irrational to break with it unless you have new evidence.
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There was *no* available evidence for what would happen if Saruman got hold of the ring. Gandalf and the Elflords had one theory: Saruman had another. We will never know which was correct. I suspect Saruman *was* wrong, inasumch as a fictional character can be "wrong."
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we absolutely have evidence. we know that the rings rapidly corrupt any mortals and that all 9 of the human kings and all 7 of the dwarf lords became corrupted this way. we also know that the other 3 Wizards became corrupted by various means (if not necessarily rings of power).
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Saruman is not mortal. Sauruman is stronger and arguably smarter than the other wizards.
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well he seemed to think so but it turns out not so much
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