Do you know what is the pattern in this poem ?

Question

Hi :
I'm not really good at understanding poems..
Can you plz answer my question .

CRABBÈD Age and Youth
Cannot live together:
Youth is full of pleasance,
Age is full of care;
Youth like summer morn,
Age like winter weather;
Youth like summer brave,
Age like winter bare.
Youth is full of sport,
Age's breath is short;
Youth is nimble, Age is lame;
Youth is hot and bold,
Age is weak and cold;
Youth is wild, and Age is tame.
Age, I do abhor thee;
Youth, I do adore thee;
O, my Love, my Love is young!
Age, I do defy thee:

Answer 1

it is a chiasm

Answer 2

I would call this a monologue with opposites (or possibly a soliloquy). I don't think it is a true chiasm (ki-az-im with long "i" sound) as the first answerer noted, but I can see where it has some definite chiastic elements (where lines or thoughts are repeated in reverse order). I included a link to what other writers would call it in regards to another woman's writing. What you have here is a long list of similes and metaphors comparing and contrasting age and youth. You can see how the writer contrasts personality and qualities using descriptions of seasons, making Age seem like a weak older person without coming out and saying "Age is an old person" - this is known as personification or an extended metaphor, especially where the writer says something like "Age's breath is short...is lame...is weak." Age does not literally have breath as it is just a concept and not an actual person, but we don't understand what age is until we see it with physical characteristics. The same goes for youth. There are some nice, short rhyming couplets (2 lines) here, but the poem does not fit a definite rhyming pattern. Hope this helps!