Frederick Douglass was a former slave who was able to attain an impressive level of education. His wisdom and intelligence were often remarked upon by the white population, who were surprised to see how capable he was.
When writing, Douglass often used words that betrayed his level of education. He also presented literary references that made his texts complex and interesting. He used these abilities in order to provide more credibility to his argument. Douglass wanted to demonstrate that black people were just as capable as white people of thinking and learning.