A Real IB English IO Example (35/40) — And Why Yours Can Be Better
- Defne OZAN
- Jun 29
- 7 min read
If you’re anything like me, the thought of the English IO probably makes you feel slightly sick. It’s one of those things IB students love to complain about — and for good reason. Finding a global issue that actually works, structuring it so it doesn’t sound like you’re rambling, and saying everything calmly in ten minutes? Sure. But here’s the thing: it really doesn’t have to be a nightmare. I wanted to share my honest take on how I got a 35 out of 40 for my English L&L IO (and trust me, if I can do it, so can you). I have included my actual transcript below — awkward phrasings, filler words, the whole deal — because I know how helpful it is to see what a real IO looks like.
When I was planning mine, what made the biggest difference was picking something I genuinely cared about. I know you’ve heard this a million times, but it’s true. If you don’t care, you’ll sound like you’re reading a Wikipedia page. My global issue was "how patriarchal societies mold women into idealized roles, eroding their individuality". My texts were Pygmalion’s Bride by Carol Ann Duffy and Cindy Sherman’s Untitled Film Stills. I spent a long time finding extracts that kind of “talk” to each other which honestly saves you from repeating yourself.
One thing I wish I’d known sooner: the structure is half the battle. For me, it helped to think of it like this:
Start with the big picture: what’s the global issue, and why do these texts matter?
Zoom into the extract: pull out the best techniques, but always tie them back to the global issue, not just the text.
Show the link to the bigger body of work: examiners love to see you “zoom out.”
Bring it home with a clear conclusion that reminds them what your argument was in the first place.
I kept my notes super simple so I didn’t sound like I was reading a script. I practiced until I could explain it like I was telling a friend — not like I was delivering a speech. Recording myself was painful but worth it. You hear where you’re too fast, where you lose your point, and where you need to breathe.
I’ll drop the transcript below. I left it exactly as I said it, because sometimes seeing the imperfect version is way more helpful than a polished sample. You’ll also find some youtube links and structure documents at the end that really saved me when I was figuring out my structure and timing. Use them, tweak them, make them yours.
A Few Little Things That Helped Me
💡 Use works you actually understand, don’t pick something just because you think it’s “impressive.”
💡 Stay focused on the global issue, it’s so easy to get lost in cool techniques, but always ask: why does this matter?
💡 Practice out loud, what looks good on paper might be impossible to say in ten minutes.
💡 Trust your voice, you don’t have to sound like an academic robot. Clarity is more important than fancy words.
My Actual IO Transcript
Here it is, word for word. Take what helps you, ignore what doesn’t.
Intro (78)
Today, for my IO, I'll explore how patriarchal societies mold women into idealized roles, eroding their individuality, through Carol Ann Duffy's poetry and Cindy Sherman's photography. I'll examine how both artists expose this destructive process. Duffy's textual reconstruction of myth demonstrates women's power to resist patriarchal molding. Sherman's visual staging reveals how media representations perpetuate this conditioning by compelling women to perform idealized femininity. Both works expose how patriarchal societies systematically erode female individuality through different media forms.
Literary Work Zoom-In (277)
Starting with the literary work Pygmalion’s Bride captures the emotional toll of this process.
The repetition of the “He–I” syntax in lines 17 to 38 creates an action–reaction pattern where the man imposes and the woman passively endures. This reflects how women are conditioned to exist in silence. This pattern builds a monotonous tone, evoking the exhausting expectations women must fulfill to be seen as “ideal.” Duffy exposes how this process standardizes womanhood and reduces individuality .
Duffy’s use of enjambment, such as in “I didn’t blink, / was dumb”, drives the pace forward without pause, mirroring the emotional buildup women experience under constant patriarchal pressure. The lack of resolution reflects the unending endurance expected of them, drawing readers into that same suffocating rhythm of compliance.
Duffy uses alliteration to emphasize power dynamics. The plosive “p” sounds in “presents, polished pebbles” reflect Pygmalion’s forceful attempts to win over the statue with clichéd symbols of femininity. These punchy sounds create a rhythm that mimics a chisel, suggesting he's shaping her physically and emotionally. The alliteration reinforces the patriarchal belief that women can be molded through gifts, reducing them to objects to be adorned. In contrast, the “sh” sounds in “I didn’t shrink, played statue, shtum” create a hushed, submissive tone. This sound contrast exposes how women are silenced under patriarchy.
Duffy's tone shifts sharply from cold detachment to seductive intensity as the speaker adopts male fantasy language — "soft," "pliable," "wild." But the caesura in "– all an act" shatters this illusion. The irony is that Pygmalion's desired passionate woman terrifies him because desire means agency, threatening male control. Duffy exposes how idealized roles imposed on women are hollow and easily unraveled.
Literary Work Zoom-Out (258)
As we move on to the whole body of work, we see how Duffy uses dramatic monologues and mythic allusions to give voice to silenced women like Eurydice and Thetis.
Duffy subverts the classical myth of Orpheus and Eurydice, employing a satirical tone and colloquial language. Through this linguistic framing and dramatic monologue Duffy enables Eurydice to challenge Orpheus and reject her role as his muse. The fragmented syntax of "Him. Big O. Larger than life." with its ironic hyperbole deflates Orpheus’s grandeur dismissed by Eurydice’s scornful tone. Eurydice's direct address, especially to a female audience, "Girls, forget what you've read," urges readers to re-evaluate patriarchal narratives that silence women. Furthermore, the poem's deliberate lack of regular form mirrors Eurydice's defiance of male-imposed structures. Eurydice manipulates Orpheus's ego to achieve her freedom, much like Galatea in "Pygmalion's Bride transforming women from objects to subjects.
Like Eurydice, in "Thetis," Duffy explores the erosion of individuality, this time highlighting women's self-inflicted molding. The poem subverts Thetis's forced marriage narrative through vivid transformations. These transformations show her futile escape from a nameless male aggressor, symbolizing systemic patriarchal oppression. The repetitive stanzas and short, enjambed lines like "But I felt my wings / clipped," along with snappy rhymes in snake/mistake, create a breathless, panicked pace. This tension mirrors Thetis's unending struggle and her self-molding to navigate patriarchal constraints. Ultimately, Thetis is "turned inside out" by childbirth, revealing even motherhood as an imposed, identity-erasing role. Her active transformations, while suggesting agency, are ultimately defeated exposing the futility of resisting systems that punish deviation.
Non-Literary Work Zoom In(246)
This critique of forced female transformation under patriarchy segues into Cindy Sherman’s photography.
In Untitled Film Still #6, we see a woman reclining on a bed gazing upward and away from the viewer. This averted gaze creates voyeuristic discomfort—the audience becomes unwilling observers of what appears to be private. However, Sherman strategically uses this detachment to generate narrative ambiguity. The viewer is left to infer what happened or what will happen, challenging the conventional "male gaze" that expects passive female display. This deliberate uncertainty forces the viewer to confront their own assumptions.
Sherman's visual choices metaphorically represent this psychological compression. The tight framing literally boxes her subject into a cramped bedroom space, while the low camera angle and centered positioning mirror how women compress themselves into narrow societal roles. Every visual element—the tousled sheets, soft lighting, domestic setting—replicates media tropes that define "ideal" femininity.
The subject's exaggerated appearance reveals the labor of becoming "ideal." Her arched back, parted lips are too perfect; they become obviously theatrical, exposing the artificial construction of her identity. Sherman's wig, makeup, and lingerie function as costume, but the character wears them as if they're natural—demonstrating how performed femininity becomes internalized identity.
Sherman's critique cuts deeper than simple objectification; she shows how patriarchal expectations seep inward, compelling women to erase authentic aspects of themselves while pursuing an impossible ideal. The subject becomes simultaneously creator and victim of her own diminishment, performing roles that gradually hollow out her individual identity.
Non-Lit Zoom Out (215)
Moving on to the wider body of work,in Untitled Film Stills #2 and #13 Sherman continues to expose the performative nature of femininity under patriarchal constraints.
In Untitled Film Still #2, Sherman uses tight cropping to frame a woman wrapped in a towel before a bathroom mirror. The medium shot creates voyeuristic intimacy as we peer into her most private space. Her absorbed gaze into the mirror creates a double image, fragmenting her identity between her physical self and reflected ideal. The mirror becomes a metaphor for internalized patriarchal judgment as she performs femininity even for herself, having absorbed society's gaze. Privacy becomes another stage for self-objectification.
Untitled Film Still #13 employs a different visual strategy through its library setting. Sherman frames the woman in a medium-long shot that emphasizes both her physical form and intellectual aspiration. The academic mise-en-scène initially suggests agency and intellect. However, Sherman's costume choices undermine this reading. The woman's fitted sweater, carefully styled hair, and graceful pose transform the intellectual space into another performance venue for the male gaze. The upward gaze toward books becomes aesthetic rather than genuinely scholarly. This reveals how even women's intellectual pursuits become filtered through patriarchal expectations, demonstrating how patriarchal expectations hollow out individual identity even in spaces meant for personal growth.
Conclusion (84)
While Duffy's poetry reveals women's potential for resistance against patriarchal molding through subversive dramatic monologues and mythic reversals, Sherman's photography exposes the internalization of these imposed roles through carefully constructed visual narratives. Both works demonstrate that patriarchal societies systematically erode female individuality by forcing conformity to idealized stereotypes. However, where Duffy empowers her speakers to reject and manipulate male fantasies, Sherman's subjects remain trapped within performative femininity, suggesting that escaping patriarchal conditioning requires not just external resistance but internal liberation from self-imposed limitations.
Total word Count:1226
My Go-To Resources
These helped me shape my structure and keep my analysis sharp:
📌 An IO example from an actual IB examiner:
📌 A website that walks you through the steps of an IO:
📌 A document that helps you structure your IO:
Final Thoughts
If you’re working on your IO right now, please know: it does not have to be perfect. It just has to be clear, connected, and yours. Be kind to yourself, start early if you can, and trust that you’ll get there. You’ve got this.
Until then- your IB Insider 🤍✨
-Defne OZAN
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