| ACKNOWLEDEMENTS | 第1-7页 |
| ABSTRACT | 第7-9页 |
| CHINESE ABSTRACT | 第9-10页 |
| CONTENTS | 第10-12页 |
| INTRODUCTION | 第12-13页 |
| Chapter One: An Overview of the U.S. Death Penalty Status | 第13-17页 |
| Ⅰ. The Uniqueness of the Present U.S. Death Penalty Status | 第13-16页 |
| 1. The Fluctuations of Death Row Population | 第13-14页 |
| 2. The Fluctuations of the Number of Executions | 第14-15页 |
| 3. Changes in Ratios between Executions and Death Row Population | 第15-16页 |
| Ⅱ. The Cause for Such Uniqueness of the Present Status | 第16-17页 |
| Chapter Two: The History and Evolution of the U.S. Death Penalty | 第17-23页 |
| Ⅰ. A Brief History of the U.S. Death Penalty | 第17-19页 |
| 1. Colonial America to the 1780s | 第17页 |
| 2. 1789 to the Late 1950s | 第17-18页 |
| 3. 1960s to Present | 第18-19页 |
| Ⅱ. The Evolution of the U.S. Death Penalty | 第19-23页 |
| 1. Reducing the Variety of Capital Statutes | 第19-20页 |
| 2. Ensuring Fairness and Rationality of the Death Sentences | 第20页 |
| 3. Humanizing the Methods of Execution | 第20-21页 |
| 4. Ending Public Executions | 第21-23页 |
| Chapter Three: The Long-standing U.S. Death Penalty | 第23-28页 |
| Ⅰ. The Influence of the Federal System | 第23-25页 |
| Ⅱ. The Legacies of the Vigilante Tradition | 第25-28页 |
| Chapter Four: Factors Weakening the U.S. Death Penalty as a Criminal Punishment | 第28-41页 |
| Ⅰ. The Judicial Justice Factor | 第28-33页 |
| 1. The Arbitrariness of the U.S. Death Penalty | 第28-32页 |
| ·Racial Discrimination | 第28-30页 |
| ·Gender Bias | 第30-31页 |
| ·Geography Disparities | 第31-32页 |
| 2.The Increasing Danger of Executing the Innocent of the U.S.Death Penalty | 第32-33页 |
| Ⅱ.The Efficiency Factor | 第33-37页 |
| 1.The High Financial Costs of the U.S.Death Penalty | 第33-35页 |
| 2.No Efficient Deterrence Value of the U.S.Death Penalty | 第35-36页 |
| 3.The Replaceable Retribution Function of the U.S.Death Penalty | 第36-37页 |
| Ⅲ.The Social Factor | 第37-41页 |
| 1.Damage to Democratic Political Institutions of the U.S.Death Penalty | 第37-39页 |
| 2.Damage to American Culture of the U.S.Death Penalty | 第39-41页 |
| Chapter Five：American Attitudes towards the Death Penalty | 第41-48页 |
| Ⅰ.The Uncertainty of the American Public Support for the Death Penalty | 第41-42页 |
| Ⅱ.American Public Peculiar Attitudes towards the Death Penalty | 第42-45页 |
| 1.The Mixed Feelings about the Death Penalty of the American Public | 第42-44页 |
| 2.The Conflict of Due Process Tradition and Vigilant Tradition | 第44-45页 |
| Ⅲ.The Change in American Public Attitude towards the Death Penalty | 第45-48页 |
| 1.More Americans Preferring an Alternative to Executions When Given an Option | 第45-46页 |
| 2.Reasons for the Shift of the Attitude | 第46-48页 |
| Chapter Six：International Influence on the U.S.Death Penalty | 第48-52页 |
| Ⅰ.International Influence in the Past | 第48-49页 |
| Ⅱ.Broader Intersection of Foreign and U.S.Interests | 第49-50页 |
| Ⅲ.Future Impact of International Influence on the U.S.Death Penalty | 第50-52页 |
| Chapter Seven：The Future Trend of the U.S.Death Penalty | 第52-58页 |
| Ⅰ.The Contradictory 1990s | 第52-53页 |
| 1.The Contradictory 1990s | 第52-53页 |
| 2.The Influence of the 1990s | 第53页 |
| Ⅱ.The Beginning of the End of Executions | 第53-56页 |
| 1.A Moratorium Strategy | 第54-55页 |
| 2.Important Decisions of the U.S.Supreme Court | 第55-56页 |
| Ⅲ.The End of Executions in the End | 第56-58页 |
| Chapter Eight：Conclusion | 第58-60页 |
| Bibliography | 第60-61页 |
