Hell, yeah. It is what motivated me -- you have to be able to see a path to changing your lot in life. I grew up as po' white trash way out in the sticks, and decided pretty early on that there was no way I was going to settle for anything remotely like that when there are better things in the world. I didn't care what it took, I wanted out.
It turns out that it requires an extraordinary amount of effort and discipline to raise yourself above the crowd by your bootstraps. But it is definitely possible. The pain and extreme hardship required to get to where I am now is a quickly fading memory, and well worth it. I don't know why people are surprised at my very humble origins; the whole point of America is that such things are supposed to be possible, even if most don't exercise the opportunity.
Your life is not defined by what is handed to you, but by what you make of it.
The problem with income inequality is when personal rights don't exist. You end up with a Saddam Hussien type of BS, or people who are just stuck.