The atomic explosion was the only way to explain how the boys were completely alone, and on the island. The island allows for plot advancement because the boys are perfectly capable of survival and being self-sufficient on the island. Had Golding not used a tropical, secluded island in the pacific, the novel could not continue and the story would not progress due to the loss of the realistic aspect. The shore of the island, the tide and the ocean are also key components of plot advancement. ""What happened to it?" (Plane Cabin) "Where's it got to now?" "The storm dragged it out to sea. It wasn't half dangerous with all them tree trunks falling. There must have been some kids still in it."" Pg. 8. Had Golding not had a large tidal flow come "clean up" the island prior to the crash, the plot would be quite flawed and the boys would not be successfully removed from civilization. If the remnants of the plane were present in the novel the boys would have metal scraps to use as tools and they could use the cabin as a shelter, so therefore providing a link to civilization, which is exactly what Golding was trying to escape in the novel. The tide also provides more physical clean up by removal of the boys wastes. If the tide was not present in the setting, the plot would not effectively go on, because the boys would become ill, and the island would not be an apparent paradise to the boys.
Another aspect of the setting, created by the storm that furthers the plot is the pool, and pink granite platform. .
"Beyond the platform there was more enchantment. Some act of God- a typhoon perhaps, or the storm that had accompanied his own arrival- had banked sand inside the lagoon so that there was a long, deep pool in the beach, with a high ledge of pink granite at the further end." Pg. 12.
Had Golding not created the pool as a feature of the island setting, the plot would not advance as efficiently because the boys would not have created a group, and gathered in a specific, designated area.
