[5] After an unsuccessful proposal of marriage to his childhood sweetheart,[3] he left Copenhagen to serve as the pastor of a ship during its two-year journey to China.

Although eccentric, notoriously disheveled,[3] and prone to becoming distracted during lessons, his good nature and pleasant disposition allowed him to become a popular teacher.

[7][8][9] In 1831, he was promoted to Professor Extraordinary at the University of Copenhagen, where he taught Hegel, classical literature, and moral philosophy.

He published translations of both contemporary and classical authors, including Lord Byron's "The Dream" and a portion of The Odyssey.

[10][11] Shortly before his death, he charged his stepbrother Christian Winter and his colleague Fredrick Olsen with the task of publishing his writing posthumously.

[12] An unpublished draft of the dedication was even more emphatic, referring to Møller as the "inspiration of my youth" and "the mighty trumpet of my awakening".

[15] To the late Professor Poul Martin Møller, The happy lover of Greek culture, the admirer of Homer, the confidant of Socrates, the interpreter of Aristotle, Denmark’s joy in "Joy over Denmark", though "widely traveled" always "remembered in the Danish summer", the object of my profound admiration, my profound loss, this work is dedicated.

Concluding Unscientific Postscript, Hong p. 351-352In his journals, Kierkegaard notes that Møller provided him advice about the study of philosophy and communication.

Part of Møller's influence came through his lectures on moral philosophy and the Greek and Roman classics that Kierkegaard attended while a student at the University of Copenhagen.

[6] Kierkegaard adopted Møller's preferred method of writing, recording his thoughts in a short mixture of poetry and prose, into his own journals.

In his attack on Hegelianism in Concluding Unscientific Postscript to Philosophical Fragments, Kierkegaard cites Møller as an opponent of Hegel.

[20] Møller's philosophy was also influenced by the theological work of the speculative theist philosopher Immanuel Hermann Fichte.