Final answer:
The question involves inferring the events from given excerpts that result in characters refraining from shaking hands, with contexts that include advanced technology affecting behavior and historical events influencing personal interactions.
Step-by-step explanation:
The context of the excerpts seems to stem from multiple literary sources, each demonstrating a character or a scenario influenced by events that prevent the usual social interactions, like shaking hands. The reasons behind these scenarios are not explicitly stated, calling for an inference based on the surrounding text.
For instance, a mention of George Hadley and a nursery suggests a reference to Ray Bradbury's The Veldt, where advanced technology in a house's nursery begins to eerily reflect the violent subconscious of the children, leading George to reflect on the potentially harmful influence of the nursery. The intense virtual reality could be the event driving his actions. Another excerpt describes Civil War soldiers gathering around a house and an old man on a terrace, hinting at a historical narrative backdrop that influences the interactions between characters. The mention of chronic malaria and a soldier's behavior during violent emotions suggests that the reasons for not shaking hands might relate to illness or psychological stress.