[New Word Dictionary] Gukrule (國rule) - An Unwritten Rule Stronger Than Law

The Hallelujah chorus from Part 2 of Handel's oratorio "Messiah," a composer representing the Baroque era, is famous as a "national rule" where the audience stands up along with the choir. Photo by BBC

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heeyoon] In the spring of 1737, George Frideric Handel, a representative composer of the Baroque era, suffered a stroke due to the aftermath of a business failure. The illness that struck him during his vigorous activities brought a significant change to his compositional style. Instead of composing large-scale operas, which had caused his business failure, he focused on oratorios, which required relatively less production cost. After overcoming his stroke with spa treatment in Germany, Handel composed the oratorio "Messiah" in 24 days in 1741 and presented it. Nine years later, in 1750, the work premiered in London before King George II. When the chorus "Hallelujah" appeared in the second part, the moved King George II stood up from his seat, and since then, a tradition has been passed down where audiences stand up when the Hallelujah chorus begins.

The term 'Gukrule' is a compound of the Korean words for 'nation' and the English word 'rule,' referring to universally accepted rules. The 300-year-old Hallelujah Gukrule creates a peculiar tension in the audience seats at every performance. Michael Steinberg, a critic for the "New Grove Dictionary of Music," described this scene as "a silent battle between secularists who firmly refuse to stand and traditionalists who scold them with fierce eyes." Recently, the number of audience members who refuse to stand until the end, ignoring the Hallelujah Gukrule, has been gradually increasing. In the past, there were also Gukrules that scholars tried to uphold. Gajeonbulnalri Ihabujeonggwan (瓜田不納履 李下不整冠) means not to fix your shoes in a melon field and not to adjust your gat (traditional hat) under a plum tree. These Gukrules, which embraced various cultures and lifestyles of the time, continue to be newly created in various fields today.

Example

A: Ugh... I just dropped my bread while eating it.
B: (Picks up the bread and blows on it) It's okay. I picked it up within 3 seconds.
A: How can you eat something that fell because it's dirty?
B: Don't you know the Gukrule that if you pick it up within 3 seconds, it's okay?
A: Still feels a bit gross...
B: Then I'll eat all the bread~

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