Two Brothers Talking: "Should the Bible be read literally, symbolically, or figuratively?"

Are the stories in the Bible literal, or figurative?  For example, was there really a talking bush?  Was the serpent in the garden an actual talking snake?  Or something else?  

How do we rectify the idea that miracles, talking snakes and bushes, and parting seas aren’t happening in the world we live in?  Why aren’t they?  And what does that tell us about the literalism of the stories of the Bible?