"Against the dark background of this contemporary civilization of well-being, even the arts tend to mingle, to lose their identity"

This quote by Eugenio Montale talks to the concept that in our contemporary society of comfort and convenience, the arts are ending up being increasingly homogenized. The "dark background" of our modern civilization of well-being is a referral to the fact that our modern-day society is so concentrated on product comfort and convenience that it is overshadowing the significance of the arts. Montale is recommending that the arts are ending up being increasingly identical from one another, which they are losing their individual identities. This is a caution that if we continue to focus on material comfort and convenience over the arts, we will lose the special and specific appeal of the arts. Montale is suggesting that we need to ensure that the arts remain distinct and specific, which we need to not let them become lost in the "dark background" of our modern society.