The paper deals with Russian folk tales and legends describing death, dying, actions and roles of their protagonists with regard not only to their present state and condition but also to their future ones. The image of Death as a significant figure has been characterized from the point of view of its various meanings. The world of objects is described as a special one with regard to the reality, influencing people and being influenced by them. The author suggests a number of attitudes towards the potential, virtual typologies connected with the meanings of the paradigmatic units. The units are also discussed in terms of their internal structure and position in general semantics.