I think the Tolkien hostility is partly D&D backlash, along with the fact that many fantasy RPG staples are little more than LOTR rip offs.
People DO NOT understand what a elf or dwarf is, they know the D&D versions, and assume that those interpretations are universal.
I used to run in a more Mythic Earth type setting, and the players found out the hard way that the Tuatha de Daan and the Alfar are not D&D "elves".
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