While the term "political science" as a separate field is a rather late arrival in terms of social sciences, analyzing political power and the effects that it had on history has been occurring for centuries. However, the term "political science" was not always distinguished from political philosophy, and the modern discipline has a clear set of antecedents including moral philosophy, political economy, political theology, history, and other fields concerned with normative determinations of what ought to be and with deducing the characteristics and functions of the ideal state. Political science as a whole occurs all of the world in certain disciplines, but can also be lacking in other specific aspects of the term. Western Ancient The antecedents of Western politics can be traced back to the Socratic political philosophers, such as Aristotle ("The Father of Political Science") (384–322 BC). Aristotle was one of the first people to give a working definition of political science. He believed that it was a powerful branch of science, and that it held special authority over other branches, such as military science. Political philosophers such as Plato and Aristotle began to analyze political thought in a way that placed more significance on the scientific aspect of political science, which was contrary to how it was portrayed by the Greek philosophers that came before them. Prior to Plato, the main commentary on politics came from poets, historians, and famous playwrights of the day. During the most prosperous time for the Roman Empire there were both men documenting the history as it happened, employing their own point of view, but also men who were implementing the politics of the day and influencing the history as it happened. Some of the main historians included Polybius, Livy and Plutarch. These men focused not only on documenting the rise of the Roman Empire, but also on the rise and fall of other nations. The men implementing the political policies as they saw fit includes leaders such as Julius Caesar and Cicero. While Caesar was a dictator who kept a tight grip on his people in order to protect his power, he did carry out reforms that would go on to benefit the people. At that point in time, political science was the process of understanding the impact of governing bodies and how rulers chose to enforce laws, as well as the history of specific countries as a whole. Nearly a