Oooh, I like this thread.
I think that without Boromir's betrayal, there might not have been that particular catalyst to push Frodo into leaving.
However, Frodo was already struggling with the decision. No doubt he was prompted by Boromir's increasing greed for the Ring, but I believe that to some degree, his mind was already made up. He knew that the break was going to happen, and he may have even been contemplating leaving alone (otherwise, why would he ask for the time to himself to think things over?). Sam knew it, too, even if none of the others did.
Sam even says it right out:
Quote:
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Originally Posted by Sam, The Breaking of the Fellowship
Mr. Frodo, he knows he's got to find the Cracks of Doom, if he can. But he's afraid
[...]
he's still too frightened to start. And he isn't worrying about us either: whether we'll go along with him or no. He knows we mean to. That's another thing that's bothering him. If he screws himself up to go, he'll want to go alone. Mark my words! We're going to have trouble when he gets back. For he'll screw himself up, all right, sure as his name's Baggins.
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...and people say Sam isn't smart.
Frodo may have been torn, but he knew what he had to do. He's a tough little hobbit, and he'd "screw himself up" eventually. That decision is independent of whatever was going on with Boromir. There was clearly a growing mistrust between Boromir and Frodo, Sam, and Aragorn...but I don't think that the decision would have been any different if the purer Faramir had been involved. Frodo has to go to Mordor. No other option makes sense. He knows it. Sam knows it. Frodo also, I think, grasps the importance of not bringing a lot of the Fellowship in with him. For one thing, Mordor is a pretty tall order, and he wouldn't wish that doom on anyone else. For another, I think he also has come to understand the importance of secrecy, and therefore a small group.
Boromir just tipped the scale, pushed him into the decision he already knew he had no choice but to make.
The battle would still have happened, and Frodo and hopefully Sam would probably have still slipped away in the confusion to head off to Mordor.
Merry and Pippin probably wouldn't have been captured, since there would have been no smaller search parties...which leads to a decreased likelihood of the Ents storming Isengard, and possibly a far grimmer Helm's Deep without Huorns to help. Not quite sure what the broader effect of this might be on the Shire, but it's not looking too good from here...Saruman already had dealings with the Shire, but can you imagine a fully-powerful Saruman messing around with the Shire? Not a nice picture.
Frodo and Sam might not have even made it to Mordor, particularly with Boromir in Faramir's place in Ithilien--Boromir has a lot of pride, and he lacks his brother's integrity on the subject of the Ring. He would probably claim the Ring for Gondor, and, unlike Movie!Faramir, he wouldn't realize his mistake until it was too late. At the very very least, this would greatly complicate Aragorn's journey, and would likely set the end of the world in motion.
It would probably have had an impact on the madness of Denethor, but that's pretty tangled. Boromir might not have been poisoned. He's probably stronger in battle than Faramir, and he also probably would have been too valuable for a suicide mission. I'm not so sure as the Palantir wouldn't have pushed Denethor over the edge anyway, so his death is probably a moot point.
On a more of a side note, Eowyn might not have made it through the aftermath of Pelennor Fields without Faramir's care and love.
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Benamir, what you say is very true... I agree with you that there is no chance at all that Faramir would have been sent to Rivendell, just based upon the cultural norms, and also on Denethor as a character. However, it's fun to think about anyway, and I do think it is notable that Fate or some higher power chose Faramir for the job. He was given the vision, not Boromir.