YouTuber Of The Week: Thug Notes Gon' Make Literature Hip Again, Yo
In this week's YouTuber Of The Week, we feature Thug Notes, a channel that specialises in expounding classical literature in language you'll totally understand if you're into hip hop. Fo' real.
By Darian Goh — 13 Oct 2014, 06:48 PM — Updated almost 10 years ago
Be honest. What's the first thing you think about when you're asked to describe a 'gangsta' or thug?
We're pretty sure you won't think 'literature expert'. Well, at least not until you hear the guys behind "Thug Notes" who are out to break stereotypes and prove that literature can also appeal to the general public if its made to relate.
Sparky tells me the idea for Thug Notes came about as a result of his “frustration with the world of academia.” “In my opinion,” he says, “an academic’s job should be to utilise their passion for the classics to make the gift of literature available to everyone. Unfortunately, in my experiences, that is not the case.”
The show was created by Jared Bauer and is assisted by Joseph Salvaggio (researcher, co-writer) and Jacob Salamon (producer, co-illustrator) who reads up on classic literature cover to cover
The main character in the series is portrayed by comedian actor Greg Edwards, who plays Sparky Sweets PHD, a 'thug' who is an expert in the classics
Before posting an episode on Youtube, they first choose a book, which one of them will read from cover to cover. Next, they analyse and cross-check studies on it before coming up with a full draft.
Then Joe starts reading the book. During this time, Jared familiarizes himself with the story and writes a first draft of the summary. After Joe finished the book and conducts some research, he sends Jared a document with key passages from the book as well as information pertaining to the analysis. Often times this will include a rough outline of the analysis section. Then Jared will compose a full draft of the summary and analysis and Joe and Jared finish it together over Skype. And yes, that Skype session is just a ridiculous as you might think.
We shoot once a month. We cover 4 episodes every shooting day. We cycle between two locations: one is jared's ex-girlfriend's best friend's house, and the other is our accountant's office. The day before the shoot, Jared and Greg will go over the scripts and rehearse.
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The creators behind the show sums it up brilliantly. They hope that "people take a look and think critically at HOW stereotypes are being used. Just because race is an element of the show doesn't mean it's racist."
Are we using a racial stereotype? Yes. Racial exploitation is present in everything- TV, sports, news, etc. We are turning this stereotype on its head and in doing so, trivializing it, as to make the point "Don't judge a book by it's cover." Our hope is that people take a look at these stereotypes being used in other instances, think critically about HOW they're being used, and opt to formulate thoughts of their own. Just because race is an element of the show doesn't mean it's racist.
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In one of their earlier viral videos, they expounded on "The Great Gatsby", which has about half a million views to date
They also did a magnificent job in explaining one of the best known literature books, "To Kill A Mockingbird" to a non-reader. It is no surprise why this video turned out to be one of their most viewed episodes, closing in on almost a million hits.
A writer had to read "Lord Of The Flies" as part of his literature assignment and he wished that there was a video like this back in the day. In this video, Sparky Sweets explains what the story means, not just in its face value but what humanity means in general.
"I feel like – well “Lord of the Flies,” that was a good one. We talked about racism, we talked about how everything – well, there’s one part of the book where the kids, after they finish beating each other up and he runs to the shore and he sees a guy in the military, and he thinks the guy’s there to save him. But he’s only really there just to spy on a war. So I feel like the analysis is so in-depth that we give people an opportunity to look at it through our eyes, and through a vision that they wouldn’t have thought about it before, and it makes them go back and read the book, like hey, they were right on this one."
pbs.orgBringing things closer to home, you'll find it a gem to swim into the mind of J.R.R. when he wrote the book "The Hobbit" before you catch in cinemas soon:
Many teachers have been using their material as tools to educate their students. The video in itself is entertaining, educational and most of all relatable to the audience. Sparky Sweets explains it nicely...
"Yo dawg, so sometimes the teach don't have the right way to communicate, you dig? So some rappa like yours truly got to give you some REAL talk. 'Cuz you all no a rapper is heard better than the teach, you feel me? Those pussy-ass pasty professors ain't got SHIT when it comes to communication, but a good home dog can take you by the reins and force you into intellectual-like space, you feel it? Now, if you found that helpful, like and subscribe, ya hurr?"
Further to hoping his audience will see that “books aren’t as boring as you might think”, Dr Sweets wants students and teachers alike to see the value in combining comedy and education. “I hope that teachers watch the show and realize that teaching is an art,” Sparky explained. “Just like theater or cinema, the artist must earn the audience’s attention. Your classroom is your audience and unfortunately a student will not volunteer their attention.
So if you're interested in literature but don't really understand all the jargon, you need to subscribe to Thug Notes here. Peace out!
