Bethany’s Reviews > Mr Skeffington > Status Update

This is what Gemini AI says... No, in this context it is not short for "laid to rest" (in the sense of dying or being buried), nor does it have its modern slang meaning.

Instead, the characters are using the term in the metaphorical sense of putting a ghost or a spirit to rest (exorcising or laying a ghost).

In Elizabeth von Arnim's novel Mr. Skeffington, when a character (like the doctor, Sir Stilton Byles) says that Mr. Skeffington needs to be "laid" because he is "haunting" Fanny, they are treating Mr. Skeffington like a troublesome ghost.

Because Fanny can't seem to stop thinking about him or feeling his lingering presence in her life, the advice is that she needs to put his memory to rest—metaphorically "laying the ghost"—by facing him, making peace with him, or incorporating him back into her life (e.g., seeing him or having him to dinner) rather than letting him haunt her conscience.

I mean, I’m not big on AI answers but thank you! I do actually think that’s what I meant by “laid to rest” not literally burying