Here's a bit of a poser, which may have been discussed before:

One of my favorite songs is Bill Watkins'/Andy M. Stewart's "The Errant Apprentice". It has the whole bit about the Turk, which some MIGHT interpret as racist (though hilariously written..."Sure bravery's no virtue when some heathen's trying to hurt you/And all noble thoughts desert you when you see his curly knife...").

My personal interpretation is that the Turk is not actually being portrayed unsympathetically; he's basically an innocent bystander who gets his head bashed by the protagonist, who is quite possibly the best example of an "unreliable narrator" I've ever seen. Throughout the song, the narrator is shown to be, well, a complete idiot. ;) So we're seeing the Turk through his eyes, and like blind lovers everywhere, he is blaming the Turk for his supposed true-love's infidelity. (Typical).

Anyway, I'm disposed to interpret the song in that light, and don't find it offensive at all. But I'm afraid to perform it these days, as you can't always expect audiences to see through that many layers of subtlety.

Sigh.