The dead are undisputed protagonists of countless folktales and legends, often the darkest and most tragic of them, though some are also gentle, hopeful and even comic. As the dead are what we must all one day become and, at the same time, the great mystery awaiting us at the end of life, the folklore of death embraces the entire breadth of human experience — its fears, longings and tragedies — and stands as one of the great themes of popular storytelling throughout the world.