Galadriel in exile?

[galadriel]

After the destruction of Beleriand, was Galadriel still in exile?

Tolkien's later writings say that since she was one of the leaders of the rebellion, she was not permitted to return to Valinor. This seems to chime with LOTR, which implies that she is unable to return. Only by her refusing to take the One Ring, a symbol of the power she once desired, is she pardoned.

However, the Silmarillion says that she and Celeborn were unwilling to forsake Middle-earth. A few of his earlier post-LOTR essays agree with this. This would make sense: they both loved their homes, and Galadriel was probably too proud at that point to admit that she had been wrong in coming to Middle-earth in the first place. In this scenario, her longing for the West in LOTR can be explained away by the fact that it is her duty to remain in Middle-earth as long as Sauron is there, since she is a ringbearer.

A compromise between the two that I read at some website, but have not seen supported by Tolkien's writings, is that she refused to apologize for her misdeeds and was therefore not allowed to return. Again, by refusing the Ring, she atones and is permitted to return without apology.

Personally, I don't think that the Valar would hold a grudge against the one remaining leader of the rebellion (all the others were dead!) and punish her, but Lord of the Rings seems to indicate otherwise. My favorite solution is the compromise above, but I'm not sure if it's based on Tolkien's ideas at all.

What I really want to know is, what's the popular consensus? Do *you* think that Galadriel was in exile? And what was Tolkien's opinion on the matter when he wrote Lord of the Rings?