In our group, we have a certain ranger that isn't too bad at roleplay (given that their background is hermit and they are naturally antisocial), and is a good and valuable player. This player is a tiefling, who according to their hermit backstory, has lived among good – willed giants and helped the tribes fend off demons, which are his 'favored enemy'. However, they say that as a Chaotic Neutral character, they simply cannot blame the demons for their inherent nature, and therefore does not dislike them.
Everyone I have ever talked to or posted on any online discussions of the class has simply assumed that the ranger's favored enemy is one that they hate.
Any discussion I give as an example, including DawnForge's "So you want to play a ranger" (YouTube link) is simply discredited by the player. I need clarification on how to resolve this issue, as hating one's favored enemy is quite literally the central part to a ranger, in my opinion at least.
Best Answer
If that's the way they want to roleplay their character than why not let them? Why does it matter to you (or anyone else) if they don't "hate" their Favoured Enemy?
The PHB says:
Nothing in there says anything about them having to hate that enemy and mechanically the game doesn't care in the slightest so why should you.
The questions posed under the Creating a Ranger section on page 90 are only there to serve as a guide and give the player ideas for things that could be a part of their backstory. They are not a strict code that the player has to incorporate into the backstory of the Ranger they create.
You say they're a good and valuable player who's not too bad at roleplaying so just let them play their character the way they want to.