According to the text, how does Mr. Hooper's veil probably affect his vision?

The
narrator in Hawthorne's "," who is a limited narratorthat is, who records events as
they appear to an observernotes that Reverend Hooper's veil

. . . seemed to consist of two folds of crape, which entirely concealed his features,
except the mouth and chin, but probably did not intercept his sight, further than to give a
darkened aspect to all living and inanimate things.

The
veil, as perceived by Hooper's congregation, imposes a slight barrier only to Hooper's vision,
and it would not have occurred to them that the veil could have effects that transcend the
physical and affect Hooper's vision of the world on a spiritual leveleven more debilitating than
if he had lost his sight.

When Reverend Hooper performs a marriage ceremony,
those in attendance feel the oppressiveness of the veil, even though the occasion is a happy
one. While he is toasting the newlyweds, he happens to catch his reflection in the
mirror:

catching a glimpse of his figure in the
looking-glass, the black veil involved his own spirit in the horror with which it overwhelmed
all others. His frame shuddered, his lips grew white, he spilt the untasted wine upon the
carpet, and rushed forth into the darkness.

Up to this
point, Hooper has felt the effects of the veil only through the eyes of his congregation, but
seeing himself in the veil forces him recognizeto seethat the veil serves as a symbol of fear
rather than as a symbol of the "secret sins" that men and women hide from each other.
The veil, rather than shielding his eyes, has compromised Hooper's ability to see the world as
it is.

Hooper's encounter with his fianc©e, Elizabeth, makes it clear that
the veil has done more than cast a shadow over his ability to see. When Elizabeth implores him
to remove his veil just for a moment, he refuses and pleads for her understanding:

O! you know not how lonely I am, and how frightened, to be alone
behind my black veil. Do not leave me in this miserable obscurity forever!

For Hooper, the veil has not only obscured him from the eyes of his
congregation, it has obscured him from himselfhe is isolated from his fianc©e, from his
congregation, from mankind. What began as a symbol of "secret sins"meant as a teaching
lesson to his congregationhas, in part because of Hooper's insistence on the importance of the
lesson, become the instrument of Hooper's own visual and spiritual isolation from the
world.