Contend with life in France (3)
I believe the answer is:
vie
I believe this is a double definition.
'contend with' is the first definition.
(I've seen this in another clue)
'life in france' is the second definition.
('life' in French)
(Other definitions for vie that I've seen before include "Compete for something" , "Try to do better than" , "Contend for superiority" , "Contend, compete" , "Jockey" .)