How prices behave

Signals, not verdicts.

Supply and demand in daily life

Prices rise when more people want a limited thing, and fall when the reverse happens. Peak train fares, hotel rates and seasonal produce are the same mechanism.

Shortages usually appear where prices are held below the clearing level.
A price is information about scarcity, not a judgement of worth.

Price discrimination

Sellers charge different people different amounts for near identical things, using timing, membership and vouchers to sort you. Recognising the sorting is what lets you land in the cheaper group.