Persons with weight of character carry, like planets, their atmospheres along with them in their orbits.

Hardy likens moral and psychological “weight” to gravitational mass: a person of strong character exerts an influence that is not confined to a single room or moment but travels with them. The “atmosphere” suggests an enveloping aura—reputation, authority, emotional tone, or ethical seriousness—that shapes how others respond, much as a planet carries its air and affects nearby bodies through gravity. The image implies that character is not merely an inner possession; it has social physics. It also hints at inevitability: as planets cannot shed their atmospheres while in orbit, so individuals cannot easily escape the consequences—beneficial or oppressive—of the presence their character creates.