IB English A Lang & Lit Purpose and Audience of Interviews Notes

Identifying an Interview: Structural and Linguistic Clues

1. Interviews are among the easier text types to identify in the exam because of their distinctive Q&A format. These structural and language features confirm the text type.

Structural Features

1. Q&A format: questions and answers are clearly separated, usually by a label ("Q:", "Interviewer:", or the interviewer's name) and a corresponding response label.
2. Turn-taking: the text alternates between question and answer throughout, with no sustained single-voice narration.
3. Introduction or framing: many published interviews open with a brief third-person introduction that contextualises who the interviewee is before the Q&A begins.
4. Informal register: because the text simulates spoken language, interviews often contain contractions, incomplete sentences, and hedging phrases such as "Well, I think..." or "It depends...".
5. Two named participants: both speakers are identified by name or role; the interviewer may be identified by the publication name or their own name.
6. Parenthetical stage directions: some interviews include editorial descriptions of pauses, laughter, or gestures, for example "(laughs)" or "(leaning forward)", which shape the reader's interpretation.

Language Features

1. First-person answers: even without labels, answers tend to be first-person and personal, with hedges, self-corrections, and direct address to the interviewer.
2. Direct or provocative questions: questions often begin with "Why", "How", "What do you think about..." or a challenge such as "Some critics argue that... how do you respond?".
3. Responsive language: answers often begin with acknowledgements or hedges that signal the dialogic, back-and-forth nature of the form.