Get out the microscope, because we’re going through this poem line-by-line.
Lines 10-12
Jewels in joy designed
To ravish the sensuous mind
Lie lightless, all their sparkles bleared and black and blind.
- Just like the useless mirrors, the jewels that were designed to ravish people's minds lie lightless at the bottom of the sea because, well, there's no light at the bottom of the sea. And if there's no light at the bottom of the sea, those jewels can't catch the light and sparkle, right?
- So all of those pretty sparkles that might have hypnotized folks on the boat have lost all of their intended power here. Instead they're "bleared and black and blind," since they have no light to sparkle with. Without sparkles, they serve no real purpose other than taking up space in the sea. Some alliteration of B words hammers home that point. Be (get it?) sure to check out Sound Check for more.
- Notice the parallelism we have going on in these last two stanzas that illustrates man's vanity with plans, trinkets, etc., and then positions those things in the sea in a way that makes them lose all value. It seems these fancy devices might make us reconsider what we believe to be valuable.
- Maybe man's intended design, like jewels, mirrors, and luxury boats, all end up looking kind of "lightless" because there's nothing real about them in any meaningful sense. Jewels can't whisper life's mysteries into your ear, right? Only things like love, nature, and other people can help to illuminate some of the big questions we have about life.