In which case Shadow makes some good points.
I don't like doing this sort of thing because of the high chance of being wrong. After-all, I don't know what your subconscious means by dreams..
If I were to hazard a guess..
It represents a fear of letting people you don't understand or know gain power or influence over you.
The people in your dream were in shadow and you could not understand their speech. They are unknown or something you don't understand, but they appear to have power over you, because you are restrained and can not escape.
“She'd become a governess. It was one of the few jobs a known lady could do. And she'd taken to it well. She'd sworn that if she did indeed ever find herself dancing on rooftops with chimney sweeps she'd beat herself to death with her own umbrella.”
― Hogfather