ORA-00265: instance recovery required, cannot set ARCHIVELOG mode

SQL> alter database archivelog;
alter database archivelog
*
ERROR at line 1:
ORA-00265: instance recovery required, cannot set ARCHIVELOG mode


SQL> !
$ oerr ora 265
00265, 00000, "instance recovery required, cannot set ARCHIVELOG mode"
// *Cause: The database either crashed or was shutdown with the ABORT
// option. Media recovery cannot be enabled because the online
// logs may not be sufficient to recover the current datafiles.
// *Action: Open the database and then enter the SHUTDOWN command with the
// NORMAL or IMMEDIATE option.