Seminar paper from the year 2009 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Culture and Applied Geography, grade: 2,0, University of Mannheim (Anglisitsches Seminar), course: Landeskunde- Anglistik, language: English, comment: Two blank pages at the end of the PDF file due to technological reasons., abstract: "I have reached the conviction that the abolition of the death penalty is desirable. Reasons: 1) Irreparability in the event of an error of justice, 2) Detrimental moral influence of the execution procedure on those who, whether directly or indirectly, have to do with the procedure." (Albert Einstein, 1979) This quote from Albert Einstein can be used as the basis to this term paper which will investigate if the death penalty is an obsolescent model or if it still has a chance in a modern society. This paper tries to analyze if the death penalty is a useful punishment or if it is a barbarian method which can`t be supported by a modern paradigm of moral and human rights. After a short introduction about the definition and the methods of the death penalty, this thesis will cover the history of the death penalty in the USA and some historical facts about the death penalty in Europe. In addition, it will focus on the fundamental problems of capital punishment as well as on some facts and developments of it. Death penalty is the strictest punishment for a capital crime. The convicted persons will be sentenced to death as part of a legal or extralegal process. This execution can be carried out in many different ways. The authorized methods in the USA are as follows: Lethal Injection: In 1977, Oklahoma was the first state to adopt lethal injection as a means of execution. The first time that lethal injection was used as a method was in 1982. .