The main duty of a Summoner was do deliver a summons, or order, to appear before the ecclesiastical courts. He was also often charged with collecting fines for "immoral" behaviour, which of course gave endless opportunities for corruption. contemporary accounts show that Summoners were much hated, especially by the poor from whom it was quite easy to extort money. Chaucer's Summoner is a particularly loathsome character. His appearance (he is so ugly that children are afraid of him) reflects his personality as is common in medieval literature. He is a drunkard and glutton who likes "to drink strong wine, red as blood" and to eat coarse food. He abuses his position, taking bribes from those who can afford it (for instance, we are told that he will let "a good fellow" keep a concubine if he pays a bribe) and bullying those who can't. He is ignorant, parroting Latin phrases picked up in the courts while having no idea of their meaning. In fact, Chaucer gives him no redeeming features at all, and he is equally disliked by the reader and the other pilgrims.
